Control
by shadows and silhouettes
Summary: Sora is used to unnecessary restrictions being placed on him. He is practically confined to his house by his overbearing mother because of his OCD. He isn't allowed to drive or go to college. He has no control over his own life. When he finds Riku, though, a worker in a local bookstore, he takes a chance, and in the process, takes control.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys, Kat here.**

**This is a fic that Laci and I wrote a while back that we've had just hanging out in our archives. We recently stumbled across it again, so we decided to upload it while you're waiting for the OFFF sequel. **

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Riku was slacking off.

Xemnas, his manager, was taking the day off, meaning that Riku was supposed to be in charge for the day. As the only senior on the staff at the bookstore, he was the oldest college kid working that day.

It helped that, according to the rumor mill, Xemnas had a thing for unnaturally bright, aquamarine eyes. Riku preferred to ignore that reasoning though. He preferred to imagine he was put in charge because he was old and responsible and shit. Although he never actually did much when he was working, he had never missed a shift.

He was not doing his job that day. Instead of giving people jobs, Riku was curled up in the back corner of the store reading. He should have been straightening up shelves, but he was choosing to pick through the new arrivals to the fiction shelves.

Riku was caught up enough in reading that he failed to notice the small brunette working his way through the row.

* * *

He hadn't meant to be organizing all of the books in alphabetical order. All he had meant to do was find a book, find his sister, and leave.

However, five minutes later, Sora was doing just that. He had tried so hard to ignore it this time, but it just wasn't happening. The indents of his fingernails in his palms were proof of this. In the process of organizing the books on the shelf, he had found the book he was looking for, but he couldn't just stop now. He had to finish alphabetizing all of them before he could go back and get it.

Riku's cell rang, and he was jolted out of his literary reverie. He looked up to see a small boy standing a few feet away, looking very focused as he pulled books from their places and relocated them to other spots on the shelves. Riku frowned.

"Hey, what are you doing?" he asked, ignoring his phone. He didn't want some kid messing with the books. Zexion's shift was supposed to start in an hour or so, and reorganizing the shelves was his job.

Sora didn't answer the question. In fact, he acted as though he hadn't even heard it. Instead, he remained focused on the books in front of him.

Getting up from the ground where he had been sitting, Riku walked over to Sora. "Hey, you. What do you think you're doing?"

Finally finishing the shelf, Sora looked up. "They weren't in order," he replied quietly.

"Does it really matter that much?" Riku raised an eyebrow.

"They weren't in order," Sora repeated.

"That doesn't answer the question, kid."

Sora just looked at him for a moment. "Yes, it did matter."

"Why? You don't work here. It's not your job to fix it."

"It bothered me."

Riku looked at the boy strangely. "Okay..."

Shrugging, Sora went back down the shelf to where the book he needed was.

"Who even are you? I feel like I should probably be thanking you instead of questioning you."

"My name is Sora."

"Well, thank you, Sora. I'm Riku." Riku stuck out his hand to shake Sora's.

Sora looked from the hand to the book he was holding with both of his own hands. He couldn't just hold the book with one hand, and putting it back on the shelf was out of the question, so he was at a loss for what to do. "U-um..."

Riku laughed. "Just consider my hand constructively shaken. What book is that?"

"A book for school."

"Where do you go to school, if you don't mind me asking?"

"It's just one of those online ones."

Riku nodded. "That works. What subject is the book for?"

"Psychology."

"I think Zex and you would get along. He's a psych major." Riku smiled. "I can't pretend I don't see the appeal. I've always wanted to take a psych course, but it never fits into my schedule."

"I'm not majoring in it or anything."

"What is your major?" Riku asked curiously.

"I don't have one. I'm just doing bits and bats of stuff."

"That makes sense, I guess," Riku said.

Sora nodded.

"How old are you?"

"Nineteen." Sora made a face.

"That's not surprising," Riku said, smiling slightly.

"Most people think it is, actually."

"I'd probably think so, too," Riku admitted, "were it not for the fact that you are taking college courses. It doesn't necessarily guarantee that you're out of high school; I took college classes back in high school. However, if you're taking 'bits and bats', then you're clearly taking more than one. Nineteen made sense."

"Oh. How old are you?"

"Older than you," Riku said, laughing.

"Vague."

"Yup. I'm not ashamed."

Sora looked at Riku. "You can't be more than a year or two older."

"Depends on when your birthday is."

"Two weeks ago."

Riku thought for a second. "More than two, then."

"By how much?"

"I'm-"

"Sora!" a high-pitched but quiet voice called. "There you are. Did you get the book?" A small girl with dark brown hair walked up to him.

"Yeah," Sora said turning to the girl. "Where'd you get off to?"

"Just looking around. You know me," she said, looking slightly abashed. "I can't resist a store full of books."

Sora smiled slightly. "Yeah, I know."

Xion smiled back. It was just then that she noticed Riku standing there. "Oh, hello! Trust Sora to walk into a bookstore and find a person."

"I was rearranging the books again..." Sora muttered.

Xion's smile faded a bit. "Oh."

Sora shrugged.

Riku stared at the two. "Are you two siblings?"

"Yeah. Xion's my little sister."

Riku smiled. "Nice to meet you, Xion. I'm Riku."

"Hello, Riku!" Xion said, smiling brightly. "Nice to meet you."

"I'll leave you two to your browsing, then," Riku said. "I should probably actually do some work."

"Have fun?"

"Sure, we'll call it that," Riku said, grinning at Sora. Sora laughed a little.

"Are you ready to head out, Sor?" Xion asked.

"Oh, yeah, I guess."

Xion smiled. "Okay. Goodbye, Riku!"

"Goodbye," Riku said, finding himself smiling slightly. Xion's smile was infectious.

"Yeah, bye," Sora said.

"Stop by again. I work Wednesdays and weekends pretty much all day."

"Will do!"

Riku smiled and waved as the pair purchased the book and walked out onto the street.

Once they were outside, Sora looked at Xion. "Well, that was interesting."

"It was?" Xion asked.

"Yeah."

"Why interesting?"

"Well, if I had found my book half a minute quicker, I would have been fine leaving them alone, but since I didn't, I met a new person."

"How did you meet him? Did he have anything interesting to say?"

"He walked over to tell me not to mess with the books." Sora shrugged. "And then we just talked."

Xion smiled. "I like when you meet new people."

"Me too. Doesn't happen often."

"You need to get out more, Sor."

"I would if Mom would let me. You know how she is..."

Xion nodded sympathetically. She definitely knew. "Yeah. It makes me sad. You should get friends, too."

"I could just leave. I'm old enough, you know."

"You could. Mom'd flip, though. She'd probably send the police after you."

"They wouldn't be able to touch me. I'm nineteen."

"That's true," Xion said, frowning. "But I'd miss you."

"I know you would. I don't want to worry Mom either. That's why I haven't run off yet. Maybe... Maybe if one of the medicines finally works, she'll let up."

"I still don't understand why. You have OCD. It's not like you're suicidal. It's sometimes a little scary, but I still think you can have a real life." Xion looked incredibly sad.

"She worries, Xi. I think she'd worry less if I had some way to prove to her that I can take care of myself, but..." Sora shrugged. "Also think she's scared to let me try just in case something bad happens. And, honestly, I can't blame her for that. You remember how it was at first."

"Yeah, I do," Xion said quietly.

Sora was quiet for a moment. "Think I could talk her into letting me go to school in the next two months if I promised to live at home?"

"You could try."

"I've _been _trying...kind of."

Xion looked at him skeptically. "How can you kind of try?"

"I've been trying to convince her to let me live on campus. I think that's half the reason she keeps saying no."

"Then try without living on campus," Xion said. "You have the grades for it."

"I also triple checked that the school would take my online credits, so it's not like I'd be behind. Although, proving that would mean telling her that I'm taking those..."

Xion sighed. "You really will need to tell her eventually, Sor."

"Think she'll flip?"

"Probably. I still think you can't keep it a secret for much longer."

"I know." Sora sighed. "I fucking hate this."

"I'm sorry, Sor." Xion skipped in front of Sora, turned around, and held her arms out. "Hug?"

"Sure." Sora hugged her.

After a few seconds, Xion let go. "We'll make it work, Sor. We always do."

"Yeah."

"I love you, Sor."

"Love you too, Xi."

"Do you think bookstore guy goes to college?"

"He does," Sora said.

"How do you know?"

"Because we talked?"

"What do we know about him?" Xion was getting excited at the prospects of grilling Sora about his new friend.

"He's not a psych major, but has always wanted to take a psych course, and he's more than two years older than me, but I didn't get any specifics on that because _someone _decided to show up right when he was going to tell me, and yeah."

Xi grinned sheepishly. "Whoops. Sorry 'bout that, Sor."

"And that's all I know about him."

"That's not actually much."

"It was like a five minute conversation."

Xion grinned at Sora's tone. "Boring."

"You're boring."

"Yup!" Xion said entirely too happily.

"Xion."

"Yes?"

"You're not actually boring."

"Yes I ammm, silly!"

"Nope."

Xion stuck her tongue out. "Prove it."

"Um..." Sora frowned.

Xion smiled. "See! You can't."

Sora shrugged. "We should probably head home before Mom sends Vanitas after us or something."

Xion made a face. "We don't want that."

"Yeah. Especially since I don't think he'd be in a very good mood if she did."

"He's scary, Sor," Xion said quietly.

"Only when he's angry."

"He gets angry easily."

"Yeah, a bit."

Xion bit her lip. "At least Dad can keep him in check most of the time."

"Thankfully. I think Vanitas still has a grudge against me, because I'm the reason we had to move..."

"It was only a half an hour or so, though." Xion looked sad. "It wasn't a huge move."

"I know..." Sora looked sad, too. "But I guess...I don't think he got why we moved when Mom or Dad could have just driven me places. Plus, I mean, he was in his last two years of high school, and they made us all change to somewhere closer..."

"At least I was going into seventh grade, anyway. I was changing schools to the middle school no matter what. It didn't hurt me any."

"Yeah. At least there was that."

"Van is just a meanie. I mean, yeah, it sucks for him, but he should have moved on by now."

"You know how he is with grudges. He holds them for like ever."

Xion's gloomy expression started to fade. She always had trouble staying unhappy with much of anything. "I wish he'd be nicer, like you."

Sora shrugged. "I think it'd be weird if he was."

"I don't. I think it'd be nice."

"Maybe."

The two walked along, a comfortable silence developing until Sora finally asked, "What time is it?"

Checking her phone, Xion said, "5:00 PM."

"It's 5? Xi, we were supposed to be home already."

"Whoops," Xion said. "I should call to let them know we're still alive..."

"Yeah. Probably..."

Xion called up her mom, and after five minutes of pacifying the frantic woman, Xion hung up.

"She was ten minutes away from sending Van after us."

"Close call. We should definitely head back then."

"Yeah." Xion sighed. She enjoyed getting out with Sora. She hated going back to the house, mostly because he never seemed happy there.

"C'mon. Maybe we can convince Mom to let us come back tomorrow, since it'll be Sunday."

"Yay!" Xion said, beaming. "That'd be fun!"

"Yep."

The two went home, and after a few hours of calming down their mother and liberal amounts of cajoling, Xion managed to convince their mother to let them come back the day after.

**[TBC]**

**Questions? Comments? Talk to us! We don't bite (most of the time).**


	2. Chapter 2

**Heya there guys! Kat here.**

**Just for future reference, Control should be getting weekly updates on Wednesdays. The whole story is finished, so we could put them up more frequently, but we actually have lives and school and stuff, so I know that I definitely don't have the time to be constantly editing and posting. So, long story short, Wednesday updates.**

**Enjoy the chapter! **

* * *

"Can we go to the bookstore again?" Xion asked, skipping along. "Please, please, please, please?"

"Yeah!" Sora agreed.

Vanitas rolled his eyes. He had been forced to drag his younger siblings out to town, because the day before they were not back on time. Their mother was always incredibly careful when Sora was concerned, and since she trusted Vanitas the most, he was her appointed guardian when they went out. "Whatever," he grumbled. "As long as we're back home in time."

"You're no fun. You know that, right?" Xion asked her older brother.

Vanitas shrugged. "I don't need to be. Mom didn't send me because I'm fun."

Frowning Xion said, "No, but that doesn't mean you can't at least try, Van."

"You didn't have to come," Sora muttered, crossing his arms.

"Mom said I had to, or trust me, I wouldn't have," Vanitas said.

"Right, because you ALWAYS listen to Mom."

Vanitas glared. "Just leave it, Sor, or I'm turning back around. You know Mom only agreed to let you come because of me."

"I'm not five," Sora protested. "I don't need a fucking babysitter."

"Oh, really, wittle baby Sora?"

"Screw you," Sora muttered.

"No thank you," Vanitas leered.

Sora didn't reply, glaring at the ground directly in front of him.

"Guys," Xion said, looking sad. "Can we at least try to get along?"

"I just don't think he needs to be here. All he does is antagonize me," Sora told Xion.

Vanitas rolled his eyes again. "Well maybe if you came back on time when I wasn't around to be on your case..."

"That wasn't my fault."

"Guys," Xion said again. "Please? We're almost to the bookstore."

Vanitas shrugged. "I still don't get why we need to go to the bookstore again."

"Because Riku should be at the bookstore," Sora said.

"Riku? Who is Riku?" Vanitas asked, raising an eyebrow.

"A person."

Vanitas turned to Xion. "Does Sora like someone?"

"I don't think so?" Xion said blinking, looking at Sora. "Do you?"

"Huh?"

"You have your giddy face on," Vanitas said, rolling his eyes.

"He's just nice..."

"You know Sora gets excited when he meets new people," Xion said.

"Yeah, yeah."

Sora was quiet. As Vanitas walked ahead of them into the bookstore, Xion sidled up next to Sora.

"Just ignore him, Sor. He's obnoxious."

"I wish he wasn't here..."

"I know." Xion hugged Sora. "I do, too." They both knew that there was no other option, though, so they tried to make the best of the situation.

The two of them finally walked in the bookstore.

* * *

Riku was supposed to be manning the checkout, but because he was still in charge, he was reading behind the counter. No one was around, so it didn't matter anyway.

He looked up as he heard the bell on the door ring. A small boy glared at him as he sped into the shop, and Riku raised an eyebrow. The boy didn't say anything, though, so Riku went back to reading. A few minutes later, the bell rang again, and Riku glanced up again.

A grin broke across Ri's face when he saw the two people from the day before, Sora and Xion. He didn't expect to see them again, let alone so quickly after.

Riku waved at Sora to get his attention. "Hello again!"

"Hi!"

"What's up?"

"We were in town again and decided to visit," Sora responded.

"I'm glad you did," Riku said, smiling. "How are you?"

"I'm okay." Sora had wandered over to the counter and was rearranging the stuff that was there as he talked to Riku. "You look bored."

"Absolutely," Riku said, trying not to smile as he watched Sora rearrange the counter. "Are you always this particular about organization?"

Nodding, Sora said, "Unfortunately. I can't really help it, though."

"That sucks," Riku said. "OCD?"

"Kind of."

"Bad OCD," Xion said, grimacing.

"Yikes," Riku said. "I'm sorry."

Sora shrugged. "Not like it's your fault."

Riku shrugged. "Still. That can't be fun."

"It's not. It's definitely not."

Xion looked at the two boys. "Well, I'm going to chase after Van. Nice to see you again, Riku!"

"Nice you see you, too," Riku said, waving as the small girl skipped away.

"I wish Vanitas wasn't here..." Sora muttered to himself.

"Who is Van? Was he the kid who stormed in glaring at everyone?"

"Yeah. Sounds like him. He's my older brother and a jerk."

Riku frowned. "Why is he a jerk?"

"Because my mom always sends him with me to places and I'm pretty sure he'd rather not come. He's more jerkish to me than he is to anyone else, I think."

"So he's okay to Xion?"

"Usually, yeah."

"That's good," Riku said. "She seems sweet. I feel like it'd be hard to be mean to her."

Sora nodded.

"So it's just you and Xion and Van?"

"Well, us and my parents, but I don't have any more random siblings, if that's what you meant."

Riku nodded. "Is it weird having so many people around all the time?"

"No? I guess I'm used to it, though. Van and Xion aren't around as much during the week, because they have school..."

"What grades are they in?"

"Xion is a junior, and so is Vanitas, but his is college and her's is high school."

Riku thought about ages for a second. "So you're smack dab in the middle, then."

"Yeah," Sora agreed. "It works just fine for me."

"What's your favorite part about being the middle child?" Riku set his book down on the counter.

"That the differences on either side are equal."

Riku looked at Sora strangely for a second before it hit him. "Oh. OCD thing?"

"Ish."

There was a second of silence before Riku spoke up. "Is it really that bad?"

"Sometimes," Sora admitted. "I've gotten a little better at controlling it, though."

"What are the symptoms for you? Is that rude to ask, or...?"

"I, um... I organize everything and I obsessively check on stuff and I count stuff a lot and I don't like it when things aren't balanced and I can't typically do things in even numbers..."

Riku frowned. "You can't do things in even numbers?"

"Yeah. Like...I can't do anything twice. It's once or thrice."

"Oh. Okay." Riku thought for a second. "So will it bother you that you've run into me twice, then, once you leave?"

"Yes, actually."

"We'll have to fix that, then," Riku said, trying not to grin.

Sora nodded.

Assured that he had at least planted the idea of Sora coming to visit again, Riku changed topics. "How long do you have?"

"Hm?"

"Today. How long do you have here?"

"Oh. Um... Until 4:30."

Riku looked at the clock on the wall. "So you have three hours."

"Mhmm."

Riku smiled. "Sounds good."

"Yeah." Sora also smiled.

"Are you from around here?"

"Yeah. We actually lived in this town until I was 14. Then we moved to the city."

"Why'd you move?"

"Because of my, um..." Sora trailed off.

Riku nodded. "Ah. Okay."

"Yeah. That's when it got really bad."

"How did moving to the city help?" Riku asked, sounding a bit confused.

"We were closer to my therapist that way."

"Oh, okay. That makes sense."

Sora nodded.

"How often do you get to come back to town?"

Sor shrugged. "It depends on how busy everyone else is."

A question struck Riku. "Where does Vanitas go to college?"

"Um...the one around here."

"Here in town?"

"Mhmm."

Riku looked thoughtful.

"What?" Sora asked.

"Hm?"

"What's that face mean?"

Riku laughed. "Just thinking. I was wondering why I hadn't ever seen him around. It's not that huge of a school."

"He doesn't live on campus, if that means anything."

"That makes a difference, I suppose," Riku said.

"Yeah. He only goes on campus for class and school stuff. He can't play babysitter if he's away from home."

Riku noticed the way Sora's voice sounded bitter when he called Van a babysitter. He didn't really know what to say, though. Sora had already made it clear that he and his brother did not get along.

"Hmm... Now that I've seen him, I'll probably notice him popping up everywhere."

"Maybe."

"I can imagine that's a hassle to commute for class, though..." Riku had debated living off-campus, but he always ultimately decided that staying there was much more convenient.

"At least he gets to go."

Riku frowned. "They won't let you go because of your OCD, right?"

"It's just my mom... Everyone else doesn't mind that I want to."

"What's your mom like?"

"She worries a lot."

"Too much?" Riku knew it was a reasonable guess to make, based on how Sora talked about her.

"Definitely."

"Yikes."

"Yeah. I mean, I get it, but..."

"But it still sucks," Riku finished.

Sora nodded.

"What's your dad like?" Riku asked.

"He's a cool guy, and he's the only person that can get Van's temper under control."

"Wow," Riku said, sounding impressed.

"Mhmm."

Riku had to check out a customer. When he was done, he turned his attention back to Sora.

"So," Sora started.

"So."

"You never told me exactly how old you are."

"Oh," Riku said, laughing. "I'm 21."

"Oh. Well, that makes sense. Junior or senior?"

"Senior."

"Old."

"Oh, shush," Riku said, rolling his eyes.

Sora laughed. "You are, though!"

"Trust me, I'm well aware."

"When are you 22?"

"March."

Sora was quiet for a moment. "Okay."

"Hm? What's up?"

"Nothing."

"I somehow don't believe you." Riku stared at Sora, folding his arms in front of his chest.

"It doesn't matter. Really."

"You sure? What's wrong with March?"

"There's nothing wrong with March," Sora insisted.

"Then why the frowny face?"

"There was no frowny face."

"There was most definitely a frowny face," Riku insisted.

"Nope. I was just thinking."

"About what?"

"Nothing important."

Riku frowned. "Okay. Whatever floats your boat."

"I don't like boats."

"Really?" Riku asked, ignoring the obvious change in topic. "I don't, either."

Sora nodded.

"My dad had a boat when I was younger, but I always refused to go out on it with him."

"Why?"

Riku shrugged. "I just never wanted to go. My mom wasn't crazy about me going out there with him, either."

"I don't like them because I get seasick."

"Ahh," Riku said. "That sucks."

"Yeah, which is why I haven't been on a boat since I was 6."

"Makes sense."

"Yep."

Riku tilted his head slightly. "Is there anything you're afraid of?"

Sora shrugged. "Everyone's afraid of something."

"I'm not afraid of much."

"What are you afraid of?"

Riku grinned, "Well, that's a secret, isn't it?"

"I guess..."

"I know," Riku said firmly.

"Okay."

"So," Riku said, but he was distracted by a boy with spiky, dark hair approaching.

"So this is the Riku," Vanitas said, staring at the boy behind the counter.

"Yeah..." Sora muttered.

"I didn't know there was a 'the' before my name," Riku said.

"Well, until now, you were more of a concept than a person," Vanitas said.

"You knew about me before now?" Riku asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Sora wouldn't shut up about you," Vanitas lied, grinning enormously.

"That's not true!" Sora protested.

"You definitely talked more about him than any of your other friends."

"Because I have all of like two and he's the newest."

"You only have two friends?" Riku asked, sounding slightly surprised.

Sora was quiet.

"He's a bit of a loser," Vanitas said. "And with his issues, it's a miracle he even has two."

"Well," Riku said, "In his defense, I don't think he's a loser. We've had two conversations, and he seems perfectly fine to me."

Vanitas laughed. "You just haven't known him long enough, kid."

"Vanitas..." Sora's voice was quiet.

"Yes, Sor?"

"Stop. Please."

"Awe, is wittle, baby Sora sad now?"

"Um, excuse me," Riku said, looking at Vanitas. "If you're going to harass my customers, I'm going to have to ask you to leave."

Vanitas turned to Riku. "You aren't seriously going to kick me out for teasing my brother, are you? This is how we always interact. Sora doesn't mind."

"It sounds to me like he does."

"I really don't think he does," Vanitas said firmly. "Besides, if you're kicking me out, then Sora's going to have to come with me, anyway. He doesn't have much of a choice in the matter."

Riku turned to Sora. "What do you want?"

"I don't want to leave..."

"Fine. Then the jerk can stay, but if he bothers you anymore, I'm kicking his ass out." Riku loved being in charge.

"He always does this. I'm used to it."

"He may do it when you're at home, but he certainly shouldn't be doing that here."

Sora shrugged.

"Your Riku is almost as boring as you are," Vanitas said, sighing. "If he weren't hot, he wouldn't even be worth YOUR time."

"You should go away now, Vanitas."

"I agree," Riku said, looking a bit unsure about what exactly had just occurred.

"I was planning on going to find Xion either way," Vanitas said, looking miffed. "But since Riku wants me to leave, I will."

Sora was quiet.

Vanitas wandered off, and Riku made a face.

"Good riddance."

Sora nodded, looking at the counter.

"Are you okay?" Riku asked, looking concerned.

"Yeah."

"He's kind of a dick."

"Yeah... He hasn't always been that way, though."

"When did things change?" Riku asked. "What was he like before?"

"It was a few years ago. He used to be a nice guy. I mean, he still is to most people, kind of, except me."

"He called me boring and hot," Riku said, sounding almost amused. "I'm not sure whether I should be flattered or offended."

"That's just how he is..."

"Is he straight?"

Sora frowned. "I don't actually know."

"I strongly suspect he is not."

Sora shrugged.

_"That might just be my gaydar at work,"_Riku thought. He wasn't going to tell Sora that he was gay quite yet, though. He didn't know him well enough for that. "Oh well. Either way, I don't like him very much."

"At least you don't have to live with him."

"Oh god," Riku said. "I can't even imagine how awful that'd be."

"Yeah."

"How do you survive?"

Sora shrugged. "Well, he's not home much during the week, and I usually don't leave my room anyway. And on the weekends, I try to get out of the house whenever I can."

"Thank goodness for being an only child," Riku said dryly.

"I guess."

"Will you be okay?"

"Yeah."

"Okay. If you ever need out, I can come kidnap you," Riku said teasingly.

"I don't think my mom would be okay with that."

"Hmm... that's a problem."

Sora nodded. "Only a little."

"I also would actually have to find you to kidnap you, and I'm honestly a pretty terrible stalker." Riku grinned slightly.

"I could just tell you?"

"Seriously?" Riku asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I dunno."

"Up to you, kid."

"Not a kid."

"Fine. Up to you, Sora."

"I..." Sora trailed off, biting his bottom lip. "I don't know."

"You don't have to tell me. I am not asking for you to."

"I know."

Riku nodded. Sora was quiet.

"So, what kind of books do you like?" Riku asked, trying to break up the silence.

Sora shrugged. "I like all sorts of books."

"What was the last good book you read?"

"Umm...I haven't read much besides school stuff lately."

"That's sad," Riku said. "I'd die if I only read school stuff."

"I don't mind. Some of it's interesting."

"Some of it is, but some of it isn't. It isn't the same as reading for pleasure, either way."

"I read loads of educational stuff for fun, too, so it's practically the same thing."

"Oddball," Riku teased.

Sora laughed. "Only a little."

"Only a little," Riku agreed.

Sora smiled.

"The good kind of oddball."

"Mhmm."

Riku smiled.

"Sorry that I'm not good at keeping long conversations going..."

"It's all good," Riku said, smiling. "I can't really criticize you for it. I'm not one for long conversations, either. I'm not generally the most verbose guy."

"You're doing better than me."

Riku shrugged. "From the sound of it, I just have more practice."

"Maybe, I guess."

"That's half of it right there."

"I don't think that's it, because I used to be really, really good at talking to people."

"Really?" Riku asked. "What changed?"

"Most of my friends stopped hanging out with me in middle school because I was 'that weird kid', and I guess that means they weren't really my friends in the first place, but...I dunno. I just sort of stopped being good at talking to people after that."

Riku frowned. "That really, really sucks. Why did things change so suddenly?"

"Because, um, that's when the OCD started showing up..."

"Oh. I see now."

"Yeah... But, at least one of them stuck around," Sora said optimistically.

"Which friend is that?"

"Just...Demyx. He's fantastic."

"Wait," Riku said, looking at him. "Demyx. Blonde kid. Crazy hair."

"Yep!"

"I know him! He's close to my friend Zex."

"Zex...Oh, that guy! I kind of know him, too. But, yeah, Dem's like my best friend ever."

Riku smiled. "He seems like a good kid."

"I don't know that he'd be okay with you calling him a kid."

"He isn't. We've had that disagreement before. It won't change anything."

Sora laughed. "This is sort of weird, though."

"Hm?"

"That we both know both of them, but we never knew each other," Sora explained.

"Well, Zex is two years younger than me. We work together and hang out occasionally, but we're not best friends or anything."

Sora shrugged. "I'm not super close to Zex, either. I only ever see him when Dem's around."

"And I only see Dem when Zex is around," Riku said, grinning.

"It's still weird."

"A little. Not bad, though. Maybe we can hang out as a group some time."

Sora nodded. "Maybe."

"Is having a group of four okay, or does someone else need to come along?"

"...I didn't even think about that."

Riku frowned. "I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"For bringing it up."

"No, it's okay. Normally, I would have said something about it myself. I just...it seriously didn't occur to me."

Riku smiled. "That has to be a good thing, right?"

"I think so, yeah."

"Good!"

"Yeah."

There was a silence. Riku glanced toward the clock. Sora had to go in an hour and his shift ended in three.

"Anyway, um, we should do that."

"Really?" Riku said, beaming.

"Mhmm."

"Sounds like a plan! Will your mom let you go, though?"

"I'll just tell her that I'm hanging out with Dem," Sora said. "She lets me do that much."

"Okay," Riku said. "As long as that will work."

Sora nodded.

"So your parents like Dem?"

"Yeah. They also know him well enough to trust him."

"That's really nice."

"Yep."

Riku smiled. "So we can swing this. I'll just have to talk to Zexy."

"Zexy?" Sora laughed.

Riku grinned. "Yup. I call him Zexy. I was hoping it would annoy him, but virtually nothing actually annoys him... and the habit stuck."

"Makes sense."

"Yup! So he's Zexy. Sexy Zexy if I'm feeling like being particularly obnoxious."

Sora laughed more. "That's brilliant."

Grinning even wider, Riku said, "His name is just screaming to be poked fun of."

"It really is."

Xion skipped over to them. "Sorraaaa, Vanitas wants to leave early."

Sora looked at her. "Vanitas can deal with it."

"He looks really serious. I don't know why he wants to leave, but he has that look on his face..."

"Did you ask him why?" Sora asked.

Xion grimaced. "He said he doesn't have to explain."

"He can leave on his own."

"But, Sora," Xion said, looking down. "You know mom freaks out whenever he returns without us."

"Just...go with him and tell her I ran into Dem so I'm staying out a little longer to hang out with him."

"Are you sure?" Xion asked Sora, biting her lip. "Vanitas might try and rat you out."

"I'm sure."

Xion wrapped her arms around her brother. "Okay. Be careful."

Sora hugged back. "I will."

Xion skipped back to Vanitas. "Let's go, Van."

Vanitas made a face, surprised that she was agreeing. He wandered to the front of the store, Xion close behind him.

"So you're not coming, Sora?" Vanitas asked.

"No."

"I won't tell mom, but you'll owe me one."

"Okay," Sora agreed.

Vanitas nodded and walked out of the store. Xion waved and skipped after him.

"Why do I feel like owing Vanitas one is a bad thing?" Riku asked.

"Depends on his mood when he decides to collect," Sora explained.

"You didn't have to do that, you know."

"I know I didn't, but I wanted to," Sora said.

"When do you have to head back now?"

"Whenever."

"So will you be around in two and a half hours or so?" Riku asked. "That's when my shift gets off... though I can realistically close up a bit early, since I'm in charge for the day."

"Probably, yeah."

"Anything you want to do while you're around town?"

Sora shrugged. "I don't usually get to pick where we go when we're here unless I absolutely need to get something."

"Didn't you live here, though? Surely you have to have some favorite spots?"

"I like the park."

"Then we'll go to the park," Riku announced.

"Really?"

"Sure. Why not?"

Sora grinned.

The rest of the time working passed fairly quickly. Fifteen minutes before closing, Riku took care of locking up the store, and he and Sora took off.

The park was only ten minutes away, so it wasn't long before the two boys were standing in front of the swingset. It would be getting dark within the next hour or so, so most of the children had gone home already.

"We should swing!" Sora suggested.

"Works for me," Riku said, picking the swing on the end and sitting down. Sora sat on the swing next to it.

"I haven't swung in years," Riku said, smiling slightly.

"I haven't either."

Riku started to swing slowly. "It's nice. I feel like a kid again."

"A 21 year old child," Sora remarked.

"Oh, shush. Just because I'm 21 doesn't mean I can't act like a kid sometimes. I mean, I don't really feel 21 most of the time."

"Oh? How old do you usually feel?" If Sora just kept focusing on Riku, then it wouldn't bother him that the swings weren't lined up. Or, at least that's what he was telling himself. So far it was working...kind of.

"I don't usually feel a specific age, you know. What even is age? It's a bit arbitrary. How many years you've been alive has little bearing on your life experience."

Sora stopped swinging and looked at Riku.

"What?"

"I like that."

"Hm?" Riku asked.

"The age thing. I don't always feel nineteen."

"I don't think I ever feel 21. I just feel... like me. That isn't an age, but it's one of the few things I don't think of in terms of numbers. I mean, I don't even drink, so I can't be all, 'I'm so old that I can legally get plastered.' I'm a senior in college, and it sometimes hits me that I should feel older. I'm on the verge of going to grad school and having a real career, but I can't think of myself as an adult."

"I couldn't drink even if I wanted to when I turn 21."

"Why not?" Riku asked.

"I'm not supposed to with my meds."

"Oh, okay. That makes sense."

Sora nodded. "I mean, I could stop taking them, but..."

"But that probably isn't the best idea," Riku finished. "Besides, you wouldn't be missing much, trust me."

"I know. I could still stop..."

"Why?"

Sora shrugged.

Riku stared off into space. "You know... this probably sounds weird, but I've always found drunk people tremendously depressing."

"I've never been around any."

"I'm in college," Riku said. "It's kind of unavoidable. Just... I don't know. Something about it makes me sad. It's not that I pity them or think drinking is wrong, or anything like that... they just make me sad." Riku shrugged.

"I'm trying to convince my mom to let me go to school if I promise to live at home like Vanitas does."

"Do you think it'll work?"

"Probably not."

Riku frowned. "I'm sorry."

Shrugging, Sora said, "I'm doing it next year no matter what she says. I'm not letting my grades and stuff that I worked for go to waste. And...and I'll be nearly 20 by then so I mean..."

"Will you go here or somewhere in the city?"

"I don't know. Does it matter?"

"Well, I won't be here next year," Riku said. "I'll be at grad school in the city, if I get into the program I want to. However, I figured that Vanitas would still be here, and it wouldn't make sense for you to go to a different place than him, if she did agree to it."

"On the other hand, though, it might get her to agree if I was somewhere in the city, because I'd be closer to home. I don't know, though. I'm pitching every suggestion I can think of, but she's turned all of them down."

"Would it work if you got your dad to agree with it?"

"He does agree with it."

"So your mom rules the roost, then," Riku said flatly.

"Kind of... Van got his temper from _somewhere, _after all."

"Yikes."

"Heh...yeah," Sora trailed off. "I mean, don't get me wrong. She's a great mom, and she just wants what's best for us, but...it's stifling sometimes."

"And that isn't the kind of thing you can really tell a parent without her getting offended."

"Yeah...Not that I haven't... I have. Several times."

"Eesh. My guess is that she didn't take it well?" .

"Your guess would be correct."

Riku grimaced.

"The first few times she, for lack of a better word, 'grounded' me to show me just how controlling she could be and that she was being nice for letting me do stuff sometimes," Sora said quietly. "She worries that if I go somewhere alone and something that I can't fix triggers the OCD, something bad will happen, which makes sense, I guess... but I still hate it."

"That's totally understandable. I don't know what I would do if my parents were like that."

"I'm trying to figure out a way to prove to her that I'd be okay."

"That's tough," Riku admitted. "Any ideas?"

Sora shrugged helplessly. "Not really. So far, the list consists of running away."

"Not the happiest option."

"Basically."

"If you ever need a place to crash, I have a single, and I can always bum an air mattress or sleeping bag off someone in my hall."

Sora smiled. "Thanks, Riku."

Riku shrugged. "No prob. That's what friends are for."

Sora was about to say something when his phone made a sound. He pulled it out of his pocket and looked at it. "Ugh," he said to himself before answering. "Yeah?" Silence. "Yes, Mom." More silence. "Later." … "No, I don't know exactly when." … "Would you just _trust _me for once?" … "Yeah, whatever. Bye." Sora hung up without waiting for a reply.

He put the phone back in his pocket before looking at Riku. "Sorry about that."

Riku bit his lip. "I don't want to make things worse between you and your mom, Sor. If you have to get home, then you should probably go."

"No, no. It's fine."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah."

"Okay," Riku said, sounding uncertain.

"Promise." Sora smiled reassuringly.

"Okay."

"So, now what?" Sora asked.

"No idea." Riku shrugged. "I'm just kind of winging this."

"I don't usually wing things, so I'm just at a complete loss."

Riku laughed. "Winging things is the way I do life."

"I like plans."

"Plans are nice, but I can live without them."

Sora shrugged, and Riku started to get curious. "Is that an OCD thing or a personal preference thing? The needing a plan?"

"Both, kind of?"

"Kind of?"

"I just like plans."

"Okay. Then what's the plan?" Riku asked.

"I don't know. That's the problem."

"Then let's make one!"

"Okay."

Riku thought for a second before letting lose a string of questions. "What are we going to do when the sun sets? When do you want to go home? Do you want to go home at all? How do you plan to get home? I have a car, and I can take you if you want me to."

Sora blinked at him.

"Too many questions at once?" Riku asked, grinning.

"Yes."

"Okay. Do you want to go home?"

Sora was quiet for a moment. "No."

"Are you sure?"

"Mhmm."

"Where do you plan to stay?"

"I dunno... I should probably go home anyway."

Riku nodded. "Probably."

"I still don't want to. It might help prove something to my mom..."

"But is it worth it?" Riku asked, feeling that it was odd that he was being the voice of reason… or at least, attempting to be. "Things will just be worse when you go back."

"It's worth it."

Riku looked at Sora. He seemed determined, and although Riku felt like this was a terrible idea, he couldn't really force Sora into anything. After all, he had only met him the day before. "Well, then, the way I see it, you have two options."

"Oh?"

"Mmhm. If you have somewhere in mind to stay, I can drive you there. I have a car back on campus. If you don't have somewhere in mind to stay, you are free to crash on my floor."

"I could ask Dem..."

Riku nodded. "Do you want to call him up?"

"I don't really want to bother him, just in case he's busy or something, but I don't want to bother you either. And he's dealt with me in the morning before..." Sora bit his bottom lip.

Riku shrugged. "I'm okay with whatever."

"I don't want to bother Dem."

"Okay," Riku said, nodding. "Is there anything you need from back home? Do you have your meds with you?"

"They're at home, but if I go there my mom will stop me from leaving again."

"Do you think Xion would be able to run them outside? I could drop you off at my dorm and go pick stuff up for you."

Sora nodded. "Maybe. But, you don't have to do that. As long as I was home before 10 tomorrow I'd be fine."

"10 AM or PM?"

"AM."

"Okay. That's doable," Riku promised.

"Okay."

Riku stared up at the sky. The sun was starting to set, and he knew it was time to start walking back. The area was not dangerous, but it was better to be safe than sorry.

He slowly got up from the swingset. "Ready to head back?"

"Sure."

"Let's go, then."

"Lead the way." Sora hopped up from his swing, and they walked back to Riku's dorm.

Riku hoped he wouldn't regret this later.

**[TBC]**


	3. Chapter 3

**I am dead tired. Here is a chapter? I hope it makes sense. It should, since Laci and I wrote it over the summer, when I was significantly less sleep deprived. Either way, enjoy!**

**Love, **

**Kat**

* * *

The two boys walked back to the campus and into Riku's dorm. Riku was on the second floor in a small single at the end of the hall. When they got to the room, Riku unlocked and opened the door, turning the lights on and setting his keys on the desk in the corner.

"Well, this is my room," Riku said. "You're welcome to use whatever space there is."

Sora shuffled into the room, eyes trained on one spot so that he wouldn't start cleaning Riku's room to fit his tastes. "Okay."

Things were quiet for a minute, and Riku turned to look at Sora. He saw that his jaw was set and he was staring at the floor. Riku was confused at first, but then he remembered Sora's OCD. "You're welcome to organize. I can see your hands clenching. Is there anything you want to fix or want me to fix?"

"I don't want to mess with your stuff."

"Sora," Riku said, folding his arms across his chest. "If you're going to stay here overnight, I want you to be comfortable. If that involves moving some things around, I don't mind."

"It's fine, really."

"No," Riku said, shaking his head. "It could use some cleaning, anyway. What do you want to fix?"

"I just..." Sora looked up at Riku. "You really wouldn't mind?"

"I really would not mind one bit."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

Before the word was even halfway out of Riku's mouth, Sora was fixing things. Riku tried not to be amused-it was a serious matter, after all. However, the determination on Sora's face as he went about organizing the room was almost comical.

"Anything I can do to help?"

Sora ignored the question.

Riku watched Sora move around the room. He felt useless, but he didn't say anything else. He would leave Sora alone and let him fix things.

About half an hour later, Sora stopped and looked at Riku. "Sorry."

"It's fine."

"Still..."

Riku shrugged. "All done?"

"Mhmm."

"So you'll be okay here?"

"Yeah, I think so," Sora said.

Riku smiled. "Okay, good. Do you have any preferences for sleeping?"

"Like how?"

Riku shrugged. "Bed, floor, blanket, sleeping bag, air mattress..."

"Oh. Um...doesn't matter."

"You sure?" Riku asked.

"Mhmm."

"Okay. You can borrow my comforter for the night, then." Riku would give Sora an air mattress, but that would involve trekking down the hall to bother one of his friends, who was currently borrowing it.

"Okay..."

"That work okay?"

Sora nodded.

"Okay, perfect," Riku said, smiling. He moved towards his bed and sat down. "Erm... I have a bit of homework to work on," he said apologetically. "Is that okay?"

"Yeah, sure."

"Thanks. I'm sorry. I'm not really used to guests, so I don't really know what to do."

"It's fine," Sora said. "Don't worry about it."

Riku got a notebook out and started scribbling things down. After twenty minutes, there was a knock at the door.

"Come in," Riku said. He looked up to see Zexion enter his room.

Zexion looked at Riku. "Ri, why is there a child on your floor?"

'I'm not a child!"

"Yeah, yeah," Zexion said, grinning slightly. "How are you, Sora?"

"I was just fine until you and your stupid hair showed up."

"Demyx's isn't symmetrical either, and you don't harass him," Zexion pointed out.

"It is so."

"No it's not. Anyway, I'm not here for you... why are you even here?"

"I ran away from home," Sora said.

"Won't your parents be upset?"

Sora shrugged.

Zexion looked at Sora, concerned. "Does Dem know you ran away?"

"I didn't actually run away."

"I should have guessed as much," Riku said. "You didn't bring anything with you, though you appear to have turned Riku's room into a dentist's office."

"Fuck off."

Zexion shook his head. "Do you want me to let Dem know? He's still up."

Sora shrugged.

"I'll just text him to let him know you're alive and safe," Zexion said, pulling out his phone.

"He probably doesn't even know I'm not at home."

"Yes he does. He was talking to Xion earlier."

"Oh."

"You can't always naturally assume he's not worrying about you," Zexion said. "He usually is."

"I guess..."

Zexion tilted his head. "Why'd you pick Riku over here to stay with instead of Dem?"

"Didn't want to bother Dem, and Riku was already there."

"He was?"

"Yeah."

Zexion looked confused. "Why was he there?"

"I've been hanging out with him like all day."

"Oh really," Zexion said, lifting an eyebrow.

"Mhmm," Sora responded noncommittally.

"How'd you meet him?"

"Bookstore."

Zexion turned to Riku. "You met him at work?"

Riku nodded. "It was yesterday, before your shift started."

"Okay, I was going to ask how could you have met him at work without me knowing. Makes sense now."

"Did you not notice the one shelf that was all neat and pretty and obviously Sora-fied?" Sora asked.

"I noticed that one shelf was in order, but I didn't immediately think, 'This shelf has been Sora-fied,'" Zexion said.

"Tsk, tsk."

"I didn't know you'd be in town this weekend."

Sora shrugged.

"So you met the kid yesterday and he's sleeping in your room today?" Zexion asked Riku. "Man, you move quickly."

Riku glared at Zex. "Shut up. I'm just helping out a friend."

Zexion's tone turned serious. "You do realize how sketchy this looks, Ri, right? You meet a kid yesterday, you spend all day with him today, and next thing you know, he's in your room. All we need is a scene where you're offering him candy and it's one of those shows about an old creep seducing and kidnapping a kid."

"Except I'm not a kid..." Sora muttered from his place on the floor.

"You're still younger than him, and a lot more naive," Zexion pointed out.

"I am not naive."

"Compared to Ri you are, Sor," Zexion said cryptically.

"Oh, shush, Zexy," Riku said, rolling his eyes. "You're making it sound like I have some tragic origin story."

Zexion shot him a look, but Riku ignored it.

"I don't, for the record," Riku told Sora. "Zexion's just being dramatic."

"Okay..."

Zexion shot Riku another look when Sora's head was turned, but Riku shook his head imperceptibly.

"Oh!" Zexion said. "That reminds me. The REAL reason I came in here was to ask if you could take over my shift on Tuesday."

Riku made a face. "I covered your shift last Tuesday, too, Zex."

"I know. I'm sorry to keep asking. I have to tutor for psych, though, and I can't make it back in time. You know Xemnas hates it when we put anything as higher priority than work, but school comes first to me. You know that." Zexion looked up at Riku. "Besides, he always pays you more in overtime than anyone else."

"Fine," Riku said unhappily. "You owe me one, then."

"I owe you four, actually," Zexion said, grimacing. "But thank you so much, Ri."

"No prob, Zex." Riku wasn't looking forward to spending another three hours with Xemnas, but if it helped Zexion, he could deal.

"You guys are boring," Sora said.

"When you get to be old, you'll be boring, too," Riku promised.

"Zex is only like a year older than me, if that. He's not old."

"Responsibility wears you down quickly," Riku said, shrugging.

Sora frowned at him.

"In other words, Riku's saying we're both just incredibly boring, and age has nothing to do with it," Zexion said, grinning slightly.

"...Okay."

"You don't look convinced."

Sora shrugged.

Zexion rolled his eyes. "You'll see soon. Ri's about as boring as they come."

"I don't think he's boring."

"Oh really?" Zexion asked. "Why's that?"

"He's just not."

"If you say so," Zexion said, grinning at Riku.

"So."

Zexion rolled his eyes again. "What are we, five years old?"

"Well, you do always call me a kid."

"Because you look like you're five years old."

"I do not!"

"Yes you do, Sora," Zexion said, poking at the boy's spiky hair.

Sora glared at him.

"He looks like a five-year-old and you look like an emo teenager," Riku said, grinning. "Meaning I'm the only one that looks my age."

"You don't look your age, either," Sora commented.

"Oh?"

"Nope."

"Don't buy it," Riku insisted.

"But, it's true!"

"What age do I look, then?"

"Like 30 or something. It's the hair, I think." Sora wasn't actually serious, but he figured neither Riku nor Zexion knew him well enough to see that.

"That's bullshit," Riku declared.

"Nope."

"Yup."

"Prove it," Sora said.

"How the hell do I do that?"

Sora shrugged. "Figure it out."

"You know," Zexion chimed in, "I wouldn't say you're 30, but I would say definitely more around 23 or 24."

"That's still older than he is."

"You guys suck," Riku said.

"Nope!"

"Yes you do," Riku said, scowling.

Sora shook his head.

Zexion grinned slightly. "I think he prefers getting sucked than doing the sucking."

"Oh, really?" Riku asked, raising an eyebrow and looking at Sora.

"U-um..." Sora stuttered, not liking the topic of the conversation.

Zexion grinned. He almost ruffled Sora's hair, but he knew it would freak Sora out. "No idea. I just enjoy teasing him."

Laughing, Riku said, "Be nice, Zexion. You don't need to traumatize him."

Sora was quiet, looking down at the floor.

"Are you okay?" Riku frowned.

"Yeah."

"You sure? I can kick Zexy out if it makes you feel better."

"It's fine," Sora said.

"Okay. If you're positive."

Sora nodded.

Zexy checked his watch. "Actually, I should be getting going, anyway."

"You sure?" Riku asked.

"Yeah, I have to finish studying for a test. I'll see you two later."

Riku waved as Zexion walked out the door and down the hall to his own room.

The room was quiet.

Breaking the awkward silence, Riku said, "Well, that was... fun?"

"Sure..."

Riku couldn't help but laugh. "I'm sorry."

"Huh?"

"You looked really uncomfortable back there, so I'm apologizing."

"Oh," Sora said. "I'm used to him acting like that. Don't worry about it."

"When I met him, I was surprised to learn that he had such a filthy brain, since he seemed so serious."

Sora scoffed.

Riku laughed. "No, I'm serious. Back when I met him, Zex was an incredibly serious person. He's mellowed out over the years."

"How long have you known him?"

"Since grade school," Riku said. "We weren't really friends back then, though. It was just a passing acquaintance kind of thing. We didn't actually get to know each other well until high school, and even then, I wouldn't have called him my best friend or anything."

"Oh."

"Yup. So, it's no surprise I got some things wrong."

"I knew him before I met him," Sora said.

"Demyx?"

"Yep."

Riku nodded. "Yeah. Those two were attached at the hip long before I knew either of them."

"I think they're attached in more places than that..."

"Only the mouth. Zexy's told me they haven't actually fucked yet, and I believe him. If they had, he wouldn't shut up about it."

"What?" Sora looked at Riku with wide eyes. "I just meant they think a lot alike..."

Riku turned a bit red. "Oh. Whoops."

"Are they seriously...?"

"Erm... yeah."

"Oh."

Riku frowned. "I... figured you knew."

Sora shook his head.

"They've been dating for two years."

"Oh..."

Riku looked at him incredulously. "You seriously didn't know?"

"Guess it wasn't important enough to tell me."

Riku felt bad now. "I'm sorry... I shouldn't have been the one to tell you about it."

Sora shrugged. "I'm sure Dem has a reason."

"I'm sure."

"Yeah."

The room was silent.

"You should do your homework now," Sora said.

Riku stared at the notebook next to him. "Do I have to?"

"You should."

"Doesn't mean I have to."

"I guess."

Riku knew Sora was right, though. "I probably should."

"What do you even have to do?"

Holding up a book, Riku said, "Just some reading and note taking. Nothing too intense."

"Sounds fun."

"Yup."

"You should do that then."

"Probably." Riku grabbed his notebook and pen.

"And I'll... Um..."

Riku looked up. "Sorry I don't have much for you to do."

"No, it's fine. Just toss me a book and I'll be good."

Riku pointed to his bookshelf. "You can pick anything you want."

"That is too far away..."

"Lazy," Riku teased, and walked over to the bookshelf. "Want me to read you the options?"

"Nah. Just pick one."

Riku picked a book and tossed it at Sora. Sora barely caught it before it hit him in the face. "Give a guy a little warning next time!"

"Sorry," Riku said, not at all looking sorry.

"Jerk."

"Not the first time."

Sora rolled his eyes and looked at the book. "Oh."

"Oh?"

"Yep."

"Why oh?" Riku asked.

"Just 'cause."

Riku was prepared to defend his choice. "It's _The Great Gatsby_! It's a good book!"

"I know it is."

"Good," Riku said, smiling slightly. "Because it's my favorite."

"Oh?"

"Yup. I read it for the first time with my dad when I was younger, and I've loved it ever since. It's depressing, but I love it."

"It's not my favorite, but it's pretty good."

"What's your favorite?" Riku moved back to his desk.

"I don't have one."

"Really?" Riku couldn't help but feel it was a boring answer, but he figured he would give Sora a chance to explain himself.

"Yeah."

"Boring," Riku said, grinning.

"Not. I don't believe in choosing favorites. It's cruel to the rest."

"I'm that way about music," Riku commented. "But when it comes to books, this one holds a special place in my heart," he said, deliberately speaking dramatically.

"Way to sound like a girl."

"Oh, shush. I have my reasons."

"I'm sure you do."

Riku nodded. "Yeah."

"Do your homework now."

Sticking his tongue out, Riku said, "Bossy."

"Who? Me?"

"Yes, you."

"No, I'm not." Sora gave Riku his best innocent puppy eyes.

"Bossy and guilt-tripping."

"I would never."

"Oh really?"

"Really."

"Liar," Riku said, grinning.

Sora pouted at him.

Riku resumed working on his homework. "Fine."

Sora smiled innocently and opened the book to read. Riku poked him with his foot and got to work.

* * *

Riku worked for a few hours on homework. Sora was so quiet that he almost forgot the boy was there. When he looked, Riku realized that Sora was curled up on the floor, fast asleep. Seeing that the boy was asleep on the floor, Riku smiled and covered Sora with his comforter.

Being a very light sleeper, Sora woke up slightly and made a small sound when he felt the comforter covering him.

"Shhh," Riku whispered. "Sleep."

Making the sound again and snuggling into the comforter, Sora closed his eyes again and drifted back off to sleep. Not wanting to wake Sora up again, Riku put his books away, brushed his teeth, and turned the lights off.

**[TBC]**


	4. Chapter 4

**Heya. Here's a chapter. Love you all.**

* * *

BEEP. BEEP. BEEP. BEEP.

Riku groaned. His alarm was going off, but it felt early. It was a Monday, right? His first class wasn't until 1:30. Why was he up?

He cracked an eye to look at the time. He was confused for a second. Why did he get up at 8:30 AM on a Monday?

He remembered why when he stood up to turn his alarm off and almost stepped on a small boy on his floor.

He had to get Sora back home by 10.

Riku turned the alarm off.

"Sora?" Riku asked, not sure how to go about waking him up.

Sleepy blue eyes looked at him. Just because Sora woke up easily didn't mean he was wide awake as soon as he was awake.

"We have to leave in 45 minutes to get you home in time."

"Mmkay," Sora mumbled, rolling over and closing his eyes again. When he was sleepy was one of the few times when Sora didn't care about things being evenly done.

Riku frowned. "Oi, you. Time to get up."

"Shhh, too early."

"Sora, get the hell up."

Sora opened his eyes to glare sleepily at Riku.

Riku folded his arms in front of his chest. "Up."

"Why?"

"Because we've gotta get you home," Riku reminded him.

"I don't wanna go home."

"You need to get your meds, if nothing else."

Sora whined and rolled over again so that his face was to the floor. "Don't wanna."

"Sora, get up." Riku nudged the brunette with his foot.

"Noooo."

"Get up," Riku insisted.

"No. Shoo."

Riku was starting to get frustrated. "Sora, get the fuck up. We've wasted ten minutes already."

Sora hissed at Riku, and Riku rolled his eyes.

"Up, or I'll drag you up myself."

"I will kick you."

"No you won't. You'll get the hell up." Riku was nothing if not persistent.

"Rikuuuuuuuuuu."

"What?"

"I'm sleepy."

Although Sora's tone was quite pitiful, Riku was not swayed. "So?"

"So, I want to sleep."

"So tough luck."

Sora gave Riku puppy dog eyes. "Just half an hour?"

"We have to be out of here in an hour," Riku reminded him. "You can sleep in the car."

"No, I can't."

"You can't?"

Sora shook his head, finally relenting and sitting up, but keeping his eyes closed.

"Why not?"

Opening his eyes to look at Riku, Sora said, "Because my eyes stayed glued to the road the entire time, and it'll be especially bad today."

"Why?"

"Because, what if you don't see something and something goes wrong? Or...or..." Sora trailed off and looked down. His hands were clenched again.

"Okay. That works." Riku didn't know what else to say.

"There's a reason my mom won't let me drive anywhere on my own..."

"Makes sense."

"Yeah..." Sora frowned.

Riku checked his watch. "Twenty more minutes."

"There is no way that's enough time... I have a very specific morning routine."

Riku frowned. If Sora hadn't been dragging his feet getting up, he would have had longer to get ready. "Can you rush it? I want to give us enough time to get through traffic."

"No, I can't. I can't rush these things."

"How long do you need?"

"Let's see..." Sora was quiet for a minute. "Thirty-three minutes."

"Okay," Riku said resignedly. "Start now and I'll speed."

Sora got up, setting about going through most of the motions he did every morning. He'd had to factor out the ones that weren't necessary and the ones that he couldn't do. Finally, after retying his shoes at least five times and making sure his hair was all in the right place, he looked at Riku. "Okay, done."

Riku checked his watch. "Thirty-three minutes on the dot. Let's go."

"I've been doing the exact same thing for five years. I know exactly how long it takes me. I've timed myself several times."

"Wow," Riku said, moving towards the door. He put his key in his pocket.

"Wow?"

"I just... can't imagine being so structured."

"Welcome to the world of watching me be OCD," Sora said. "You should see it when I'm at home. It's more than twice as long."

Riku grimaced. "Wow. That's scary." His own morning routine was getting out of bed, putting clothes on, brushing his teeth, and maybe showering, if he had time. It took fifteen minutes, tops.

"I'm used to it. I've done it for years, after all."

"Wow," Riku repeated. He walked out of the room, holding the door open for Sora.

Sora laughed a little as he walked out of the room. "You say wow a lot."

"Only around you," Riku said, laughing. "I'm not used to the whole OCD thing yet."

"It's only this bad when I haven't taken the latest medication they've decided to try," Sora explained. "They all work for a few months and then, BAM, it's like I've never had one at all. The latest is surprisingly effective, though."

"How long have you been on this one?"

"Nearly half a year."

"That's good, right?" Riku asked. He did not have much of a concept how long was normal.

"The longest before this one lasted five, so yes, good."

Riku smiled. They got to the car and climbed in after Sora triple-checked everything.

"What time is it?"

"It's 9:31. If I gun it on the highway, we can get to the city in time." Riku froze. "I just realized I never actually found out where you live. What part of the city are you in?"

"Somewhere near the center. I can give you specific directions once we're close enough. And, it's okay if we're not there by exactly 10."

Shaking his head, Riku said, "I said I could get you back by 10. I plan to get you back by 10." Riku considered his options. "I'm going to take the back road way. That way I can speed without having to worry about cops. I'll have to deal with the highway later on, still, but there won't be as much traffic."

"Okay..."

Riku pulled out of the parking lot and hit the road. They hit the highway 15 minutes in, meaning that Riku had managed to shave about 10 minutes off the usual time. They were still six minutes behind schedule, but Riku knew they were a bit after heavy rush hour. This was doable.

"I should probably call my mom..." Sora muttered, not looking like he was looking forward to that.

"Hm?"

"To let her know that I'm alive and stuff. Otherwise, she's going to pounce the second I walk through the door."

"That's probably a good idea," Riku agreed.

"Yeah..." Sora pulled out his phone and called his mom.

"Hello?"

"Hi..."

"Where are you, Sora?" His mother's voice was clipped. That was a very, very bad sign.

"On my way home..."

"Where were you?" she demanded.

"With a friend."

"Which friend?"

"Not Demyx," Sora said.

"Then who, Sora?" her tone was sharp and frustrated.

"A new friend."

"Who?"

"Riku... Xion knows him, too." Sora hoped that helped dull down the fact that his mom did not know Riku.

His other pressed on. "And how is it that she knows him?"

"Saturday and Sunday in town."

"So you went home with someone you met two days ago, Sora?" She sounded incredulous.

"Kind of...? But, Zexion was right down the hall!"

Her anger was temporarily replaced by confusion. "Why was Zexion down the hall?"

"Because he lives there?"

"Where is there?"

"The dorms at the college in town," Sora said.

The suspicious, accusatory tone was back. "Why were you staying with a college student?"

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe because I'm sick of being stuck in that stupid house all the time."

"Sora, we moved to this house for you. The least you can do is a be a bit grateful."

"I didn't want to move there!" Sora said unhappily. "Why should I be grateful?"

"We did it because of your condition. We uprooted the whole family so you could be closer to doctors."

"I didn't ask you to!"

"Sora, are you questioning my willingness to help you out?" his mother asked. Her tone was verging on dangerous.

"I know you're willing to. I just kind of wish you wouldn't sometimes. I can take care of myself."

"I disagree. You can't seem to go anywhere on your own without panic attacks."

"I can so!" Sora protested. "I just did!"

"How long did it take you to reorganize that kid's dorm room?"

Sora was quiet.

"How long, Sora?"

"It doesn't matter."

"I thought so," she said, a hint of triumph in her voice.

"What do you mean?"

"You're incapable of functioning without your family." Sora's mother sounded downright smug.

"That's not true!"

"Without Vanitas or Xion around, you simply can't survive."

"Yes, I can!"

"Oh really?"

"Yes. If you'd just give me a chance..." Sora muttered.

"Every time I give you a little bit of wiggle room, you always fail," she said, not softening her tone.

"Name one time."

"I've tried letting you go into town alone before."

"When?" Sora asked.

"When you were on your previous medication."

"Oh, right. The one that didn't work. That hardly counts."

"It isn't worth the risk," she said with finality.

Sora was starting to get really fed up. "You can't do this forever, Mom! I get to have a life, too!"

"No you don't."

"You don't mean that..." Sora's voice was quieter than he meant it to be.

"I do."

"Mom..."

Sora could picture his mother's eyes rolling when she next spoke. "What, Sora?"

"You're not keeping me from having a life."

Clearly, his mother had had enough. "It's not like you're really capable of one," she said calmly.

"Yes, I am!"

"Sora, you are not arguing this with me. I am your mother."

Sora was getting louder and louder. "I don't care. You're not me. You can't decide what I'm capable of or not capable of."

"I am your mother, Sora," she repeated. "I'm the one who supports you financially and gives you a place to stay and has raised you since you were born. I know what you are capable of."

"No, you fucking don't! You limit me because you think you know, but you don't!"

"I know what you are capable of," she said simply.

"I don't believe you."

"Tough luck."

"Whatever. I'm done with this conversation." Sora hung up before his mom could reply.

Riku glanced at him out of the corner of his eye. "You okay, kid?"

"No."

"What do you want to do?" Riku asked carefully.

"I don't have any choice but to go home."

"Okay." Riku did not question Sora's decision. Instead, he refocused his attention on the road. After another minute or two, he asked, "Which exit?"

"Two from the one we're about to pass."

"Okay," Riku said. A few minutes later, they took the exit.

"Where to now?"

From there Sora gave Riku directions. Before long, they had pulled up to Sora's house. Riku checked his watch.

"Two minutes ahead of schedule," he said proudly.

"Lovely..." Sora did not seem nearly as enthusiastic.

Riku caught onto Sora's tone, and it worried him a bit. "Are you going to be okay?"

"Always am."

"I feel like that's a lie," Riku said, frowning. "But it's not my job to tell you if you're being honest or not."

"It's not a lie."

"Okay," Riku said, shrugging. He pulled a notebook out of his glove compartment, tore out a piece of paper, scribbled something on it, and handed it to Sora. "That's my number. If you ever need anything, you're welcome to call."

Sora nodded. "Thanks."

With that, Riku's duties were fulfilled. "I'll see you when I see you, then, I guess."

"Yeah. See you." Sora got out of the car.

Riku waved, and as soon as he saw Sora enter the house, he started to drive down the street and back to school.

Slowly and quietly, Sora walked through his house to the kitchen.

"SORA?" Xion said, attempting to sneak up on her brother in the hallway and tackle him. "YOU ARE ALIVE!"

"Yeah," Sora said, dodging out of her reach. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Mom seemed to think you were kidnapped, for some reason."

"Well, I wasn't..."

"I'm glad," Xion said brightly. "I'd be sad."

"Did you honestly think Riku would kidnap me?"

"No! But Vanitas encouraged mom," Xion said apologetically.

"Vanitas is a jerk."

"Yeah." Xion pouted.

"Anyway, I need breakfast now."

Xion nodded, and they started to walk back to the kitchen. "Mom's just left to run errands, so you're safe for another hour or so."

"Perfect. I plan to be gone before she gets back."

"Where are you going?" Xion looked confused.

"Anywhere," Sora said.

Xion looked like she was going to burst into tears. She wouldn't treat his statement seriously were it not for the fact that he had actually disappeared for a whole night. Everyone was worked up about it, and she was worried in the first place. The idea of him taking off was not that farfetched, anymore.

"Xi... I'll be back. I just have a point to prove first."

"Sora," Xion said, her voice shaking. "A-are you're s-sure that is what you need to do?"

"No. I just don't know what else TO do."

"What do you mean?" she asked quietly.

"I had an argument with mom earlier over the phone."

"So?" Xion said, sounding frustrated. "You and Mom are always fighting."

"This one was kind of different," Sora explained. "I told her she couldn't keep controlling every little thing I do and that I get to have a life, too, and...she said that I didn't. She said that I couldn't manage on my own. I want to prove her wrong."

Xion looked down. She did not want Sora to see the disappointment in her face. "Where are you going, and how long will you be gone?"

"I don't know... Maybe this is a stupid idea..."

"I think it's a tremendously stupid idea," Xion agreed, "but if it means you'll be less miserable, then I can't blame you for doing it."

"It's only stupid because I don't have a plan, yet. If I planned everything out, I think it'd be okay."

Xion nodded. "Then do you want me to help plan things out?"

"Sure."

"Okay. Could you stay with Dem?"

"Dunno." Sora moved past Xion to the kitchen to get breakfast. "Maybe, but I'm not sure how well that'd work."

Xion was genuinely confused. "What do you mean?"

"Because of Zexion."

That did not clear things up any for Xion. "Hm?"

"Because they're together and stuff."

"And?" Xion didn't look as surprised as she was supposed to be.

"I dunno," Sora said. "I just think it'd be weird if I was around and then he was around and yeah."

"Zex has a single, doesn't he?"

"I don't know. I think so."

"And you've stayed over at Dem's before with no problems, right?" Xion asked.

"Well, yeah..."

"Then you should ask him before leaping to conclusions."

"I guess so. I'll ask him later, after Fruit Loops."

Xion laughed. "Okay. Sounds good."

After eating his Fruit Loops, Sora finally got around to taking his medicine for the day. He had just put the bottle away again when he heard the front door. That could mean one of two things: either his mother was back, or Vanitas was coming home. It was too early for his dad to be getting home.

"So wittle baby Sora ran back to his mommy?" a voice asked. Vanitas had entered the kitchen.

"What do you want, Vanitas?" Sora asked wearily.

"Why does it matter?"

"Because I'd like to spend as little time around you as possible."

"Oh really?" Vanitas asked.

"Yeah."

Vanitas smirked. "So when are you leaving?"

"What do you mean?"

Vanitas sat down across from Sora. "Xion looks sad and you're fidgeting."

"That doesn't mean I'm leaving."

"Mom told me about your conversation," Vanitas said, yawning. "Being the favorite has benefits."

Sora just glared at him, and Vanitas repeated his question. "So when are you leaving?"

"None of your business."

"Before Mom gets home, right?"

Sora shrugged.

Vanitas rolled his eyes. "You can leave quickly."

"No, I can't. I can't just up and leave."

"Pity," Vanitas said. "We'd be happy without you."

"Fuck off."

"That's your job," Vanitas said, grinning.

"Not today, Vanitas. Please?"

"Why not, baby Sora?" Vanitas said, his tone mocking.

"Just go away," Sora said, looking away from Vanitas.

"Why not today?" Vanitas demanded.

"Just go the fuck away." Sora glared.

"Sora, why not today?"

Sora's tone was brusque. "I'm not in the mood."

"Awwww, why is Sora not in the mood?"

"I'm going to hit you."

"No you won't."

"How much are you willing to bet that I won't?" Sora asked.

"I don't make bets. I don't need to," Vanitas said cockily.

Sora looked at Van for a moment before hitting him.

Vanitas punched Sora in the gut almost immediately after. "Don't screw with me, kid."

Sora barely stopped himself from doubling over. "Was that...really necessary?"

"Was hitting me necessary?"

"You deserved it."

"Then you did as well.," Vanitas replied.

"I hate you so much."

"And I'm supposed to care... why?"

"I don't care if you care or not."

Vanitas sighed. "Sora, when the hell are you leaving?"

"Why do you want me gone so badly?" Sora asked.

"Because the house will be more peaceful without you."

"Oh..."

"Yup!" Vanitas looked almost cheerful.

Sora was quiet.

"Shut up Vanitas," Xion said, glaring at him.

"Stay out of it, Xi."

"No," Xion said firmly. "I'm not letting you bully Sora."

Vanitas shook his head. "Don't get involved, Xion."

"Too late," she said, glaring. "Leave him alone."

"Don't think so."

While the two of them were arguing, Sora had left the room.

"Sora?" Xion asked, stopping her conversation with Vanitas and running after Sora down the hallway.

"Leave him, Xion," Vanitas shouted after her, rolling his eyes. "He's not worth your time."

By the time Xion caught up to him, Sora was already in his room.

"Sora?"

"What?"

"What can I do?" Xion asked sadly.

"Nothing."

"You sure?" Xion frowned.

"Yeah." Sora shrugged. Xion gave him a hug. This time Sora did not hug back.

"What's the plan?" Xion asked.

"I don't know, but there's no way I'm getting out of here before Mom gets home."

"You still have another half an hour, at the least."

"You said I had an hour forty-five minutes ago," Sora said. "How does that even work?"

"I got a text from Mom while you and Van were arguing," Xion explained. "She had to make another few stops."

"Oh. Okay. I still don't see how this is going to work, though."

"Dem lives 15 minutes away," Xion pointed out.

"Yeah, I know that. But, I still have to get stuff together, and you know how I am about packing anything. I need normal necessities, my school stuff... Xion, that's going to take like an hour."

"If you give me a list of the things you need, I can pack for you," Xion offered. "Namine and I are going out to see a movie later on, so I can drop stuff off at Dem's-though you'll need to call him and make sure it's okay, first."

"Yeah, I know." Sora pulled out his phone. "He texts back faster than he answers usually, so..." Sora sent Dem a quick text.

Less than a minute later, Sora's phone started vibrating. "What'd he say?" Xion asked.

Sora read the text. "He says it's cool." He sent Dem an appreciative reply.

Xion smiled. "Are you okay with me packing for you?"

"Not really, but I don't have much of a choice."

"I'm sorry, Sor. I know by now exactly how you organize things, though, to the exact angle. I promise I won't mess up your room, and I'll be really, really organized packing."

"Okay. I trust you."

"Thank you." Xion smiled slightly. "How are you getting to Dem's?"

"Umm..."

"Can he pick you up?"

"One sec." Sora sent another text to Dem and got a super quick reply. "He says he can't for at least half an hour, so...no?"

"How are you going to get over there, then?" Xion looked nervous. "It's too far to walk."

"Drive me?"

Xion's frown deepened. "I can't. Mom and Dad have their cars, and Vanitas has to go to class soon."

Sora sighed.

"I'm sorry, Sor."

"Hey, Xion..."

"Yeah?"

"Why aren't you at school?" Sora asked.

Xion mumbled something under her breath.

"Hm?"

"I was worried about you."

"Oh..." Sora bit his bottom lip.

"Besides, Namine has been bugging me to skip with her and go see a movie for a while now."

"Such a little rebel."

"Shhh," Xion said, putting a finger up to her lips. "I faked sick this morning. If I weren't such a good actress, I never would have gotten away with it. It's a good thing I'm Daddy's little girl."

"I'm proud of you, Xion."

Xion looked at Sora, confused.

"Mom's hard to fool."

"Vanitas helped me out a little," Xion admitted. "But it was mostly me."

"Vanitas was actually helpful?"

Xion nodded.

"Oh."

"I love you," Xion said, somewhat abruptly.

"That was random...but I love you too."

Xion smiled. "Good. Now back to the issue at hand. How are we getting you to Dem's?"

"I still say you drive me there and Van can get a ride with a friend or something."

Xion bit her lip. "Give me two minutes." She skipped out of the room.

After a few minutes, she returned, keys in hand. "I talked to Vanitas. We've got the car. Let's go." They walked out to the car, and Xion unlocked the doors. They both got in and headed out. The drive to Demyx's didn't take long.

Sora looked at Xion. "You'll bring my stuff later?"

"I will," Xion promised. "I just have to get back home quickly, before Mom catches me. Van said he'd text me if she beats me home. I'll bring it up later, when I go out with Namine."

"Awesome." Sora smiled. "You're the best."

"Nah. You are."

Sora shook his head, opening the door. "I'll see you later, Xi."

"Seeya, Sor."

Sora got out of the car and went inside. He was there enough and close enough to Dem that just walking in wasn't weird.

Xion drove away, a frown on her face, but knowing that she had done what was best.

**[TBC]**


	5. Chapter 5

**Guys, we are actually ridiculously sorry it took this long to get this to you. School got super crazy. We'll put up another chapter within the next few days to make up for it, okay?**

**Love,**

**Laci and Kat**

* * *

Sora's mother had been dialing her son's cell phone for almost an hour. Sora had been gone for almost an entire day, and she was starting to get angry and worried. She would feel better if he would just answer the phone.

Finally, after much persistence, she got through.

"What?" Sora answered.

"Where are you, Sora?"

"Somewhere," he said, not even bothering to be descriptive.

"Where is somewhere, Sora?" she pushed. She was freaked out, to the point where, if she didn't get some answers soon, she was going to do something drastic.

"Just somewhere."

"Vanitas wouldn't tell me either," she said coldly.

"Good."

"I'll call the police," she threatened.

"They can't do anything," Sora said. "I'm nineteen. I'm legally allowed to leave home without permission."

Sora's mother scowled. "If I report you as a missing person, they will still look for you."

"I'm not missing, though, and you know that, so then you'd get in trouble."

"You are missing," she said firmly. "You're not here with me."

"So then, with that logic, Xion is missing every time she's at school or with a friend, same for Vanitas. And yet, never once have you threatened to call the cops about that."

"Because I know where they are."

Sora rolled his eyes. "I'm somewhere safe and that's all you need to know."

"That's not enough."

"If I tell you anything more, you'll just show up here. I'm not risking that."

That was when things finally clicked for Sora's mother. "Are you at Demyx's house?"

"...No."

"You are," she said triumphantly.

"I'm not."

"I know you better than that, Sora."

"I doubt that."

"I do, Sora."

"Whatever," Sora responded. "Are we done with this conversation?"

"Come home."

"No."

"Then I'm going to get in the car right now," she said. She walked across the room to grab her car keys.

"I'm not going home!"

"Yes, you are."

"You can't make me."

"I can talk to Demyx's mother and ensure that she doesn't let you stay."

"Mom, please." Sora's voice cracked a little.

She stopped, twirling the car key between her fingers. "Why?"

"Because I'm tired of being treated like a child. Yeah, I have OCD, but that doesn't make me disabled or something."

Sora's mom was silent.

"Just...let me be a normal teenager. That's all I want." Sora's voice was getting quieter and quieter.

"You aren't, though. You never will be."

"You don't know that. You've never let me try!"

"We can't risk that," Sora's mother said firmly.

"Why not?"

"Because if it goes wrong, you'll get hurt."

"I'll be fine," Sora insisted.

"No, Sora. Absolutely not."

"_Why?_"

"It's in your best interests."

"Fuck that," Sora snapped.

"Sora, watch your mouth!"

"No!" Sora said indignantly. "Keeping me locked away in that house is not in my best interests. All it ever does is make me miserable. I want to live, I want to have fun. I deserve to do that just as much as anyone else."

"You aren't everyone else," Sora's mother said bluntly.

"That doesn't mean I don't deserve it."

"It doesn't mean you get it," she countered.

"Then what's the point of me even existing?" Sora asked.

"It's not my job to tell you that."

"You can't prove it."

"Neither can you." Sora's mother was getting tired of this conversation. She just wanted her son to come back home, and this conversation was turning into a full-blown power struggle.

"I don't feel like there's a point," Sora said. "I'm just miserable all the time. What kind of life is that?"

"The real kind."

"Yeah fucking right."

"The real world isn't a cakewalk," Sora's mother told him.

"I never said it was. I just... I should be in school right now. I should have more friends than I have fingers on one hand. But, because of YOU, I'm not and I don't. You keep me from doing anything."

Sora's words hurt, but she knew he was upset, and she tried to move past it. She started heading to the car again. "It's for your safety."

"No, it's not! I can handle that kind of stuff."

"No you can't." There was music in the background and the sound of a car starting up.

"Prove it."

"I'm going over to Demyx's house," she said, using her most commanding tone of voice. "You're coming back home with me, and you're going to give up this nonsense."

"No."

"Sora, behave," she chastised. "I don't know why you always have to be so difficult."

"Because you try to be a control freak!" Sora shouted.

"Because someone has to watch out for you."

"I can watch out for myself."

"No," she said sadly. "You can't."

"I can."

"No, you can't."

"I'm not a child, Mom."

"Yes you are. Legally, you may be an adult, but that doesn't mean anything."

"I haven't been a child for a long time."

"That's what that boy next door thought, too, and look what happened to him."

"I'm nothing like him!" Sora argued.

"You and Marluxia both always were a bit on the soft side," she disagreed.

"Mom," Sora said quietly.

"What, Sora?"

"Please don't compare me to him. It makes me feel ill."

She stopped at a stoplight and turned the music down slightly. "You're more alike than you'd care to admit."

"Not really."

Things were quiet for a moment or two before she finally spoke up again. "I'm three minutes away from Demyx's house. Be ready to leave."

"I'm not going anywhere."

"Yes, you are."

"Um, no."

"I'm outside. If you are not in this car in five minutes, I am coming in to get you," she threatened.

"I'm not leaving."

"Then I'll come get you in five minutes."

"You can try," Sora challenged.

"There's no trying involved."

"Sure there is."

"Oh really?" she asked.

"Yep."

"And why's that, Sora?"

"Because I'm not leaving," Sora said firmly.

"That's debatable."

"Not really."

Sora's mother hung up the phone, got out of the car, and walked up to the door. Finding that the door was locked, she rang the doorbell and waited. A moment later, a blonde head peeked out of the now unlocked and slightly opened door. "Um..." Demyx muttered. He'd only opened the door because his mother had told him to before going off on a mini rant about manners.

"Hello, Demyx. How are you?" Sora's mother asked politely. She had always been fond of Demyx.

"I'm okay. Um, you?" Demyx was clearly uncomfortable.

She smiled at him. "I'm fine, thank you. Do you mind if pop in for a few minutes? My son and I need to have a talk."

Demyx fidgeted a little. "He, erm, said that he doesn't want to talk to anyone that's not Xion, Zexion, Riku, or me."

Sora's mother frowned. "Not even his father? Also, who on earth is this Riku character that he keeps mentioning?"

"Riku is a person."

"I figured as much," she said dryly.

Dem smiled innocently. "He's about...this tall." Demyx held his hand to a little above his own height. "Light-colored hair. Um, he's a student at the university and he works in the bookstore."

"Do you know Riku?"

"He's friends with Zexion, so yeah," Demyx said.

"Is he trustworthy, or should I be concerned that my son spent the night in his room?"

"He's trustworthy, I promise."

Although Sora's mom did not like the situation, she decided that trusting Demyx's judgment was probably her best bet in calming her frazzled nerves. "How old is he?"

"Um...21, I think."

"My son spent the night in a room with a 21-year old?" she asked.

"Yes? But, if I'd thought that was a bad idea, I would have gone and gotten Sora, so it's no big deal?"

Sora's mother's frowned deepened. "You knew he was there?"

"Yeah. Zex popped in the room and saw him there and told me about it."

"Did he explain why he was there?"

"Who?" Demyx asked.

"Zexion."

"Why Sor was there or why he was there?"

"Why Sora was there," she clarified.

"Um...no, but I assume it was the same reason Sora's anywhere."

"Which is what?"

"Because he doesn't like being at home, and I honestly don't blame him."

Sora's mother's face twisted. "Would you mind running and getting your mother for me?"

"Why?"

"I would like to speak to an adult."

"I am an adult," Demyx protested.

"You aren't in charge of the household, Demyx," Sora's mother insisted. "I would like to speak to your mother."

"Um, I think she's busy."

She folded her arms in front of her chest. "I can wait."

"She's gonna be busy for a while..."

Sora's mother stared at him. "Oh really?"

"Yeah. She's on the phone with someone."

Although it seemed like Demyx was being honest, Sora's mother suspected he was just trying to avoid letting her into the house. "You're getting better at lying, Demyx. I'm impressed."

"I'm seriously not lying. It's probably my dad or something. She didn't sound happy."

Sora's mother's face grew a bit softer. "Give her a hug for me, okay, Demyx?"

"Okay."

She sighed. "You aren't going to let me talk to Sor, are you?"

"You two would just fight and he's happy right now and I don't wanna mess that up," Demyx said apologetically.

"I mean well. I don't think he realizes it, but I love him, and I don't want him to get hurt."

"Did you ever think that maybe you're hurting him the most?" Demyx asked.

Sora's mom shook her head. "When you have kids, you'll understand."

"I don't think I'll ever understand how it's okay to make your child cry every night."

"He doesn't cry every night."

"Do you want to see the call log on my cell phone from when he calls me at exactly 11:27 every night?"

She was quiet for a second. "Sometimes tough love is necessary."

Demyx's tone changed abruptly. "I want you off of my porch in the next minute or else."

"Or else what?"

"Leave."

Sora's mother looked at him for a second. "Have your mother call me later."

"My mother is busy handling her divorce. I don't think she has time for your bullshit."

Sora's mother rolled her eyes. "I wasn't going to bother her about Sora. I was going to make sure she's okay. I know she's been having a rough time lately."

"I can handle that myself."

Sora's mom shook her head. "Just tell her to call. Let her make her own decisions, Demyx. Sometimes it's nice to have someone your own age to talk to."

"You're one to talk about letting people make their own decisions. Have fun with your hypocrisy parade." Demyx shut the door.

Seeing no other option but to leave, Sora's mother got into her car and drove home.

* * *

Riku knocked on Demyx's front door. Zexion had given him the address after explaining the situation. For some odd reason, he felt that Riku visiting would make things better. Riku didn't really mind dropping by to see Sora, especially if it would actually do some good.

Yet again, Demyx opened the door. This time he was slightly confused. "Hi."

"Hi," Riku said. "Zex said he texted you that I was dropping by, but based on your facial expression, this is not true?"

"No. It is. He just failed to say when."

"Oh. Sorry," Riku said sheepishly. He felt rude coming unannounced.

"It's fine. Um, I assume you'll want to come in?"

"If that's okay. I can leave if it's a bad time," Riku offered.

"No, no. It's fine." Demyx moved to give Riku room to walk inside.

"Thanks," Riku said, walking in. "How has he been?"

"Happy, for the most part. Except for the one day when his mom showed up, but I handled that well, I think."

"What'd you do?"

"I spoke to her in a calm manner and told her to have fun on her hypocrisy parade because she was trying to lecture me about letting people make their own decisions," Demyx explained.

"Yeah... from what I've heard, she's not the greatest at that herself."

"Exactly!" Demyx said. "Then I shut the door in her face, which might have been a little immature of me, but it was fun."

"How long ago was that?"

"Yesterday..."

"Oh," Riku said. "Zex told me all this went down recently, but I had no idea it was that recent."

"Yeah. Sor showed up Monday morning and his mom was here by late afternoon."

"Zex told me late last night. I had classes at 8:30, 9:50, and 1:30, so this is the first opportunity I've had to come over here."

"That's fine," Demyx said.

"Thanks for taking him in. I know you're his friend, and friends help each other out, but it's still really good of you."

Demyx shrugged. "I've been trying to convince him to do this for ages."

Riku smiled. Demyx was a good friend for Sora to have. "I'm glad he listened."

"Yeah. Anyway, um, we should probably go find him..."

Riku nodded. "Any idea where he is?"

"Last I saw, he was in the kitchen."

"Okay. Lead the way."

"Onward!"

Demyx and Riku walked down the hall and into the kitchen, where Sora was laying on the floor with a small, fluffy orange cat sitting on his chest. The two seemed to be in a staring contest.

Riku didn't want to say anything at first. He didn't want to bother Sora, because he looked happy. He was staring at the cat, his eyes wide, but he was smiling.

A moment later, Sora said, "Ha! I win!"

Grinning, Riku said, "Congratulations?"

Sora's attention turned from the cat to the two boys standing in the room. "Uh, hi."

"Hey," Riku said.

Sora grabbed the cat and sat up, placing it in his lap. "How long have you been standing there...?"

"Just a few minutes," Riku said, still grinning.

"That's embarrassing."

"Nah, it's all good. It would have been worse if you had lost."

Sora grinned. "This is true."

Riku plopped down on the kitchen floor, sitting facing Sora with his legs crossed. "So what's up?"

"I found a kitten this morning!"

Smiling at Sora's enthusiasm, Riku said, "I can see that. Did you give the kitten a name?"

"I don't know what to name her. At least...I think it's a her."

Riku looked at the cat. "Yup, that's a her."

"You can't tell from just looking at a cat. Their...stuff is internal-ish, I think."

Riku made a face. "Really? I didn't know that. We never had pets growing up."

"I think we should Google it, just in case."

Pulling up google on his phone, Riku said, "How are we going to tell if it's a girl and a boy, then?"

"Well, did you google it?"

After pushing a few buttons, Riku nodded. "You were right."

Sora smiled. "But, does it say what to do anyway?"

Riku handed his phone to Sora.

Sora read it over. "Oh... I don't want to do that."

"Yeah, me neither," Riku agreed. "We can give the cat a gender-neutral name?"

"Sounds good."

"You get to pick."

"Um... I don't know," Sora said.

"What do you think, Dem?" Riku asked.

They both turned to where Demyx had been only to find that he was no longer there.

"Where'd he go?"

Sora shrugged. "I don't know."

Riku sighed. "So much for that plan."

"Yeah..." Sora looked at the kitten. "We can't leave it nameless forever."

Riku went through all the gender-neutral names he could think of before finally proposing, "Sammy?"

"That works. I was thinking about that anyway."

"Sammy it is, then," Riku announced.

"Sammy the orange kitten."

"Works for me," Riku said, smiling. "Will Dem's mom let you keep Sammy around?"

"She's the one that suggested I keep Sammy."

"I'm glad!"

"Yeah." Sora smiled.

There was silence for a second or two as they focused their attention on Sammy.

Riku eventually broke the silence, asking, "Are you staying here for good?"

"I don't know. I told Xion I'd be back home eventually, but..." Sora trailed off.

"But you don't really want to, do you?"

"Not really," Sora admitted.

Riku nodded. "That's completely understandable."

"I just...I miss home, really I do, but I also like having the freedom to do stuff. Like...my mom would never let me have a cat, but I enjoy Sammy being around already."

"Why wouldn't she let you have a cat?"

"She'd probably go on about me not being able to handle it and how not having a pet would be for my own good. I don't know."

"Lame." To Riku, it almost sounded like Sora was guessing, more than stating a fact that he already knew. He did not press it, though.

"Yeah. I'm scared that if I decide to ever go back home, she'll try to take Sammy away."

Riku frowned. "That'd be sad."

"Mhmm," Sor muttered, scratching Sammy's head lightly.

"Well, it looks like I wasn't needed here after all," Riku said, smiling slightly.

"What do you mean?"

"Zex told me to pop in and check on you, just to make sure you were okay. I dunno why he sent me, but I figured he had a reason. It looks like you're doing just fine, though."

"Oh." Sora blinked. "Well, that was nice of him."

"Zexion is actually a nice person, most of the time, though he likes to pretend he isn't."

Sora nodded. "But, still..."

"You've got good friends, Sora."

Sora smiled. "I'd like to think so."

"Dem and Zex are the kind of people who you want on your side when things turn rough."

"And you."

Riku shrugged. "Can't tell you from experience on that one."

"Trust me."

Riku raised an eyebrow. "But you've only known me a few days. That's not enough time to determine anything with certainty."

Sora shrugged. "I'm a strangely good judge of character."

Although he thought it seemed a bit odd, Riku let it slide, merely saying, "Okay."

Sora smiled at him, and Riku smiled back. Letting Sora win clearly made him happy, and Riku knew there was no way he could argue with Sora about this. Even though Sora was wrong, Ri would rather let him be happy.

Riku was of the opinion that Sora could use a lot more happy.

**[TBC]**


	6. Chapter 6

**You know that awkward feeling where you wrote something a while back and you were so excited to write it because it was fun and then you go back later and are like, "What the hell were we thinking when we wrote this?"**

**That keeps happening here. I am not very pleased with past!Laci and Kat.**

**Oh well. Here's a chapter! There's a bit of a time skip between the last chapter and this one, just so no one is confused.**

* * *

Xion heard the door creak open. She was confused. Vanitas wasn't due home for another half an hour. Who was in their house?"

She walked to the front door, and her face lit up.

"SORA!" she shrieked.

"Hi."

"You're back! Are you staying this time? Please tell me you're staying this time." Xion wrapped her arms around her brother.

"Maybe, yeah."

"Only maybe?" Xion's bottom lip wobbled.

"I don't know, Xion."

"Oh." Xion looked down.

"I'm sorry. I'm here now, at least."

"Yeah."

"Is anyone else home?"

"Nope," Xion answered. "Just me."

"And now me," Sora added.

"Yeah."

"Everyone is in for a surprise when they get home later."

"Yeah."

"Should be fun. Oh! And I have a surprise for you!"

Xion perked up a little at that. "You do?"

"Yeah!" Sora walked to where he'd set his stuff and unzipped a small, oddly-shaped case he hadn't left home with. From that case, he pulled Sammy.

"Is that a kitty?" Xion's face lit up.

"Mhmm. Her name is Sammy."

Xion moved closer to Sora. "Can I hold her? I love kitties!"

"Sure." Sora held out the kitten for Xion to take.

Xion cuddled Sammy in her arms. "Can we keep her?"

"I've had her for two weeks. I'm not giving her up now."

"Good." Xion beamed. "I love her already."

Sora smiled. "Dem's mom found her and made her my responsibility."

"Aweeeee. Sora the kitty's mommy."

"I'm not a mommy, though!"

Xion only grinned, hugging the cat close to her.

"Do you think Mom will let us keep her?"

Xion's chin jutted out. "There's no way Mom is taking Sammy away from us."

"Good."

"Please stay, Sor."

"I'll try, Xi."

"Thank you." Xion knew that was all she would get.

"It was nice, being at Dem's for so long," Sora admitted.

"I missed you."

"I missed you, too."

"Don't tell him I told you this," Xion said conspiratorially, "but I think even Van missed you."

"Aww. I didn't miss him...much."

"You missed him some, then."

Sora shrugged. "A little."

"Did you miss me more?" Xion asked.

"Of course."

She smiled. "Good."

Sora pulled her into a hug. "Love you, kid."

Xion buried her face into Sora's chest. "I love you, too."

"I'll try to stay around for a while."

"Thank you," Xion said genuinely.

"That's not necessary."

"Yes it is," Xion insisted. "I know you hate being here."

"I'll deal."

Xion frowned. "I hate when you're unhappy, though. I want you to stay here with me, but I hate making you unhappy."

"I'm happier than I was."

"You are?"

"Yeah," Sora said.

"Why?" Xion asked.

"Just am."

Although that reasoning made little to no sense to Xion, she decided to accept it and let it be. "I'm glad. You should be happy!"

"I like it."

"Me too."

Sora smiled, and Xion let go of Sammy so that she could hug Sora.

"I love you," she said, pulling him close.

"Xi, I love you too," Sora said, "but don't let her run off! She likes to claw things."

Xion looked sad, but she got up and grabbed the cat back. "Sorry."

"It's fine. You didn't know. We'll just have to...keep in one of our rooms or something until we teach her not to."

"Okay." Xion hugged the cat.

"Do you wanna keep her in your room?"

"Can I?" Xion's face lit up.

Sora smiled bemusedly. "Sure."

"YAY! Thank you, Sora!"

"No prob. She likes to sleep right next to people, so if you wake up and she's in your face..."

"Aweeeeee," Xion said, grinning. "She sounds like a sweetie."

Sora nodded.

"Thank you, Sora."

"No problem."

The smile faded from their faces when Vanitas walked into the living room.

"Oh. You're back," Vanitas said, addressing Sora without even bothering to say hello.

"Yeah."

"For how long?"

Sora shrugged. "However long I'm here."

"Mom know yet?" Vanitas asked.

"Nope."

"Fun."

"Yep."

"If you die, I get your room," Vanitas commented dryly.

"Why? You have your own."

Vanitas just shrugged. "I could use the extra space."

"Jerk."

"Whatever."

Sora insistently said, "Xion gets my room if I die."

"I don't want you to die, though," Xion said, pouting.

"I probably won't, but I'm establishing that Vanitas doesn't get my room, just in case."

"Whatever," Vanitas said, rolling his eyes. "Have fun getting killed by Mom."

"She won't kill me," Sora said calmly.

Vanitas raised an eyebrow. "You disappeared for two weeks."

"So? She knew where I was."

"Do you seriously not know Mom?" Vanitas asked, sounding almost incredulous. "She got told off by a teenage boy and wasn't allowed in the house."

"Doesn't mean she didn't know I was safe."

Vanitas rolled his eyes. "Doesn't mean she's not ticked."

"She's always ticked at me for something."

"This blows those times out of the water."

"Whatever," Sora said.

"Just warning you," Vanitas said, shrugging.

"I'm sure I'll survive."

"Yeah. You're pretty bad at that whole dying thing, generally," Vanitas said. "Anyway, I'm out of here. Xion, you're in charge."

Sora rolled his eyes at Vanitas. Vanitas walked back to his room.

Xion frowned. "Vanitas is right about one thing, Sor. Mom's really not happy. I think she was part mad and part scared, since she knew you'd be running out of your meds soon."

"Why do you think I'm back?" Sora asked.

"Oh." Xion looked sad.

"And because I missed you."

"That's secondary, though."

"Only because I am almost out."

Xion looked sadder. "See. Secondary. You wouldn't have come if you weren't almost out."

"I might have soon."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

That made Xion smile a little. "Good. We missed you."

"I missed you." Sora paused and checked the clock. "How long do I have?"

"An hour or so," Xion responded, not even needing to ask what Sora was referring to.

"Okay."

"So if there's anything you want to do now, just in case you need to make a run for it..."

Sora shook his head.

"Okay."

"Wanna play with Sammy while things are still calm?" Sora asked Xion.

She nodded happily. "Yes please. Do we have any yarn?"

"Dunno."

"Hmm..." Xion disappeared for a few minutes and returned with a skein of blue yarn.

"Well, that was quick."

"I am magic," Xion said, as if that explained everything.

"Makes sense."

Xion threw the yarn to Sora, who caught it. "Now what?"

Xion shrugged. "I don't know. We've never had a cat."

"I just have normal cat toys. I've never used yarn."

"Hmm..." Xion took the yarn from Sora and handed it to the cat.

Sammy just looked at it, tilting her head to the side a little as she experimentally reached out a paw to bat at it.

"Aweeeeee," Xion said, laughing. "She's so cute, Sora. I want to keep her forever."

"You should see her at foodtimes."

"Hm?"

"She's sillier then," Sora explained.

"Awe." Xion smiled. "I love animals, Sor."

"I like some of them," Sora said pensively.

"Which ones don't you like?"

"I don't like arachnids."

Xion shook her head violently. "But they're so cute! Except the big fuzzy ones... those are scary."

"...they aren't cute!"

"Yes they are!" Xion insisted. "They're adorable."

"Nuh uh."

"They are so pretty when they walk," she said, smiling hugely.

"You are so strange sometimes."

"As long as they don't eat me, they are adorable," she insisted.

"If you say so..."

"So!"

"Okay."

Xion grinned enormously, and the two played with Sammy until their mom got home.

"Xion, is Vanita-" Sora's mother froze when she walked into the living room.

Sora looked up from pulling a piece of yarn around in front of Sammy. "Hi, Mom..."

"You're back," she said quietly.

"Yeah."

"When?"

"Earlier. About an hour or so ago."

She processed the information quickly and started heading into her dangerous mode. "Why did you leave?"

"Because I wanted to."

"That's not a good reason, Sora," she said, her tone warning.

"I think it is."

"Demyx wouldn't let me see you," she said. She sounded hurt.

"I know."

"I was worried about you."

"I know," Sora repeated.

"Why didn't you talk to me?" she asked.

"Didn't want to."

"You could have been dead."

"Except you knew I wasn't," Sora replied.

"Not for a fact."

"I called Xion a lot. She would have known.'

"She could have been lying," Sora's mother said, though everyone knew the idea was a bit silly.

"Xion, Mom."

"Or you could've been lying," she continued.

"Mom."

"What, Sora?"

"I was fine, I am fine. Drop it," Sora said testily.

Finally, she broke, and she started to get angry. "No. I'm not dropping it, Sora. You disappeared for TWO WEEKS."

"I was at Demyx's house. How is that disappearing?"

"You weren't home. I couldn't make sure you were okay."

"Well, I was, and you have to trust me on that," Sora said.

"How can I trust you?" she asked.

"Because I'm your family?"

She just stared at him. "You don't act like it."

Sora frowned at her.

"It's always about you," she continued.

"No, it's not."

She shook her head. "Yes, it is. Always. Just… don't you dare do that again."

"I'm a legal adult," Sora said, shrugging. "You can't stop me."

"You may legally be an adult, but you're still a kid. I love you, but you are still a kid."

Sora shook his head.

"You are."

"I just wanted some time away. Some freedom."

"You acted like a child," she insisted stubbornly.

Sora shrugged. "I saw no other choice."

"You could have been mature and at least talked to me about it."

"I TRY to talk to you about things. You almost always shoot me down," Sora said. "What would you have said if I'd told you I wanted to spend a couple weeks at Dem's? Huh? You would have said no because I couldn't handle it or it wasn't safe or something equally ridiculous. I can't act maturely and talk to you about things, because you don't give."

"I would have let you stay a week or so," she said, trying to sound calmer than she was. "I trust Demyx and his mother."

"What if it had been Riku?"

"I don't know Riku. I would not let my son stay a week with a complete stranger."

"He's not a stranger to me," Sora snapped back. "I trust him."

She looked at him. "I've never met him. I know nothing about him. To me, he's a stranger."

"I trust him, Dem and Zex trust him. Do you not trust our judge of character skills?" Sora asked.

"I would still like to meet him first." Sora's mother did not trust anyone she had not met, and, truth be told, she did not trust Demyx and Zexion and Sora's judgment. They were young, and could easily be acting out of naivety.

"That is completely doable."

She frowned. That was not what she had meant. "Do you actually plan to stay with him for a week?"

"No, but you could still meet him."

Sora's mother knew that it was better than the alternative, so she sighed and accepted it for what it was. "I would like that."

"Okay."

"Don't leave again."

"We all have to leave eventually, Mom," Sora said. "We're growing up."

"Not like this. This was completely unnecessary."

"I know. I'm sorry."

Glad that Sora had finally admitted that he hadn't necessarily acted the best himself, Sora's mother just nodded, accepting the apology. "Hug?"

Sora walked over and hugged her.

"There'll be punishments for this later," she said, "but right now, I'm just glad you're home."

"What kind of punishments?"

She shrugged. "Probably extra chores. Maybe grounding."

"Mom..."

Sora's mother caught movement out of the corner of her eye, and when she turned around, she saw the cat sitting on Xion's lap. "What is that?" she asked.

"That's Sammy."

"Where did Sammy come from?"

"Dem's mom put me in charge of taking care of her while I was over there and she said I could bring her home with me..." Sora explained.

Sora's mother looked distinctly displeased.

"Pleeeeeeease can we keep Sammy?" Xion asked, giving the best puppy dog eyes that she could.

Sora's mother sighed, not liking it, but too drained to fight against Xion on it. "The cat stays out of sight. If it makes a mess or ruins our furniture, it has to go."

"She'll stay in my or Xi's room," Sora said. "Promise. We'll make sure she behaves." Xion nodded her agreement.

"Fine."

Sora grinned and hugged his mom, not even caring that it was a little lopsided. Xion grinned, cuddling Sammy close to her chest. "Thank you, Mom!"

"I'm going to start on dinner," she said, hugging Sora. "Do you have cat food and kitty litter already, Sora?"

"Yeah. It's all in my room."

"Okay. If you ever need anything for Sammy, let me know, and I'll go pick it up."

"Thanks, Mom."

She gave a small nod. "Okay. I've got work to do. You go work on homework."

"I would if I had any..." Sora muttered bitterly.

Sora's mom merely shrugged. Sighing, Sora picked up Sammy and retreated to his room.

"Mom," Xion said quietly. "Why can't he go to school?"

"Can you imagine him living in a dorm, Xion? It'd be a mess. He'd be in a situation he couldn't control at all."

"He doesn't have to live in the dorm," Xion pointed out.

"Then he has to use transportation, which is just as bad. He can't drive, and the bus is out of the question..."

Xion shook her head. "Why can't he just go with Van, Mom?"

Sora's mother was quiet. "It's scary, Xion."

"Life's scary, mom. Every time Vanitas and I drive we could die. Every time we go anywhere anything bad could happen to us. You don't treat us like we're made of glass, though."

"Xion..." Sora's mom started to talk, but Xion shook her head.

"Give him a chance," she said, walking back to her room.

Sora's mom was left alone in the room. She had some thinking to do.

* * *

Within the next few weeks, Riku was allowed in Sora's room a few different times, and he could never get over how unchanging it was. Everything was exactly the same. The exact same clothes were in the exact same places folded the exact same ways. His bed was made exactly the same every day and his door, when it was open, was open to the exact same degree.

It was a bit disconcerting and a bit reassuring.

Riku was sitting on the floor. He was afraid of messing up the bed or the chair or anything else in the room. The floor, though, was safe.

"You don't have to sit on the floor, you know. I'm not going to tell you off for it." Sora was sprawled on his bed with Sammy.

Riku looked up at Sora and grinned. "Nah, it's okay. You're on the bed with the cat, and I've never been especially fond of desk chairs. Unlike you, some of us have long legs to spread out."

"Always with the short comments."

"It's so easy," Riku agreed.

"It's tedious."

"You're not exactly easy to poke fun of, you know," Riku said, shrugging. "Short jokes are classic."

"What do you mean I'm not easy to poke fun of?"

Riku shrugged. "You're too nice to poke fun of too much. Making fun of your OCD or your mom wouldn't be cool, and making dirty jokes around you feels like corrupting you. So, that leaves me with short jokes."

"Most people don't have a problem with any of that."

"It just rubs me the wrong way," Riku said. "I don't think I could say those things to you. Wouldn't feel right."

"I guess," Sora said, shrugging.

"My mother raised me better than that."

"I'm glad for that."

Riku smiled. "Yeah."

"You're a good guy. You know that, right?"

"Hm?"

"You just are."

"Nah," Riku argued.

"Yes."

Riku shook his head. "You're a better person than I am."

"Not really."

"Seriously."

"How?"

Riku shrugged. It wasn't something he had really thought through, it was just something he instinctively knew. "You're just a genuinely nice person."

"No, I'm not."

"Yes you are, Sora."

Sora shook his head.

Riku sighed. "I'm not going to convince you, am I?"

"Nope."

"Oh well," Riku said lightly. "It was worth a try."

Sora laughed. Riku grinned.

There was silence for a second before Riku asked, "What's up?"

"Nothing."

"Nothing?"

"Nothing," Sora confirmed.

Riku rolled his eyes. "That's dreadfully boring."

"I'm boring."

"I disagree. I think you're interesting," Riku said.

Sora shrugged, and Riku frowned.

"What?"

"You are interesting," Riku pushed.

"Not really, but thanks for saying so."

"No, you are."

"That's your opinion."

"It is," Riku said, as if that were obvious.

"I strongly disagree with it."

Riku frowned. "Why?"

"Because I don't think I'm interesting," Sora said simply. "The only notable thing about me is my OCD, which isn't exactly the most uncommon of mental disorders, so it's barely notable as is."

"That's not all, though."

"Yeah it is."

Riku shook his head. "Nope. You're a good person. The way you interact with other people and the way you talk and the way you act and... everything about you is interesting."

Sora stared at Riku for a moment. "If you say so."

With a wry grin on his face, Riku said, "So."

Sora frowned at him, but Riku smiled.

"I still don't buy it," Sora argued.

"You don't have to, I guess."

Sora shrugged, and Riku sighed. Sora was too stubborn for his own good sometimes, he decided. "Either way, it's my point of view."

"Okay."

"Yup." Riku sighed.

Things were quiet for a minute or two, both of the boys lost in their own thoughts.

Finally, Riku broke the silence. "I'm glad we're friends, Sora."

"Me too."

**[TBC]**


	7. Chapter 7

Short chapter this week, and something a little bit different. Stuff is starting to happen again (sorry for the last few weeks—I know it's probably felt like the story's been kind of stuck in a rut), and it might not make sense at this point, but this stuff does actually have a purpose, we promise. From this point, things are moving forward.

Love,

Laci and Kat

* * *

Vanitas was in his room. Ventus was supposed to come over that afternoon, and it made Vanitas happy. He hadn't seen the boy in a few days, and he just wanted to be around him. Ventus had this way of making everything brighter.

No one knew they were dating. Vanitas had kept it from his family. He didn't think they needed to know. It was none of their business, really. So, the family knew Ventus was a friend, but they didn't know just what benefits came with that "friendship".

Ventus arrived ten minutes later. Vanitas heard a knock on the door and let Ventus into his room, closing the door firmly behind him.

Vanitas was glad his mother didn't know he was gay. It let him get away with a lot. There was a policy about keeping the door open when girls were in the room, but no policy with regards to boys.

"How are you, Ven?" Vanitas asked.

"I'm good. How are you?"

"Much better now that you're here," Vanitas said. He sat back down on his bed, leaving room for Ventus to sit next to him.

Ventus smiled at Van as he sat on the bed, too. Vanitas wrapped his arms around him.

Ven leaned closer to Vanitas. "Hi."

"Hi." Vanitas smiled as Ventus shifted closer. "I missed you."

"I missed you too."

"Anything interesting happen?"

"Not really," Ventus said. "What about you?"

"Not much," Vanitas responded. "Things are different now that Sora's back. Mom's been very skittish around Sora, which I cannot really blame her for. I think my favorite part of this whole situation is that little brother has a boy, though he doesn't know it yet."

"He what?" Ventus looked confused.

"He has a new friend that he is quite clearly crushing on," Vanitas explained.

"I didn't know that Sora liked guys that way."

"I don't think he knows it, either." Vanitas smiled slightly. "But I know he likes him. Sora keeps inviting him over to the house and spending all sorts of time with him. Hell, this guy has even met our mom. That shows you Sora is really serious about him sticking around."

"That's cute."

"Mmhm."

"You're not still mean to him, are you?" Ven was always trying to get Vanitas to be nicer to Sora, but it usually failed.

"We currently have a truce," Vanitas responded, keeping his phrasing as vague as possible.

"Oh?"

Vanitas nodded. "He stays away from me and I leave him alone."

"Van..." Ventus started, sounding disappointed.

"Yes?" Vanitas asked, blatantly ignoring the puppy dog eyes that were already starting to form on Ventus' face.

"That's not the same as being nice."

"I'm not being mean," Vanitas pointed out.

"No, instead you're basically shunning your brother," Ventus said, not sounding convinced that Vanitas' solution was any better.

"It's a peaceful agreement."

"It's not right, Vanitas."

Vanitas looked at Ventus. "Look, the more he's around me, the meaner I am. This is a good thing for both of us."

"But, why?"

Vanitas shrugged. "He pisses me off. The parents care more about him than they do about me. He gets pretty much everything he wants, even though he's an ungrateful little brat about it. It's frustrating."

Ventus frowned. "He's always nice whenever I see him."

"Nice and grateful are two matters entirely different," Vanitas said. "He's a ray of freaking sunshine to everyone but the people who actually care about him."

Ven shrugged. "He doesn't seem ungrateful either."

Vanitas looked pointedly at Ventus. "We completely uprooted our lives for him and all he does is bitch about it."

"Have you ever asked him why?"

"He says he didn't need it, that he hates getting 'special treatment', according to Xion," Vanitas said snarkily.

"That sounds more frustrated than ungrateful."

"He and Mom do nothing but fight."

"About what?" Ventus asked.

"He thinks she's overbearing because she actually gives a fuck about him," Vanitas said. "I get that he has OCD, and it's not entirely his fault, but if he made less of a fuss, and actually seemed reliable instead of constantly freaking out on her, she might trust that he'd be safer. He's an idiot, though. He doesn't get Mom."

"Elaborate."

"Mom doesn't want him getting hurt," Vanitas said. "She doesn't let him drive because he always ends up getting into accidents because he gets distracted. She doesn't let him into too many new situations because he has panic attacks when something is not quite right and he can't fix it. He hates it and thinks she's being overly controlling."

"That sounds downright stifling. I'd hate it, too," Ventus said, wrinkling his nose.

Vanitas shrugged. "It's Mom's way of showing she cares. He doesn't seem to get that."

"Well, how would you like it if she was doing all of that to you? Put yourself in Sora's shoes."

"I'd deal. I'd either talk my way out of it or I'd just shut up and deal with it," Vanitas responded.

"The fighting might be his way of trying to talk his way out of it. It sounds like he's fighting against it because he doesn't want to be treated differently."

Vanitas rolled his eyes. "That's the thing. He may not like it, but he does need to be treated differently. Mom takes it a bit too far, but a lot of it is justified."

"Has anyone ever talked to him about that? Without shoving restrictions down his throat at the same time."

"Dad and Xion have, I think," Vanitas said, not liking where this conversation was going. It sounded like Ventus was going to propose having HIM talk to Sora, which was not something he wanted. He and Sora did not see eye to eye, and Vanitas was fine with that. "He's way closer to those two."

"They're also not the ones doing the restricting. It's not going to have the same effect, probably."

"Look," Vanitas snapped, "I'm not doing the restricting, either. I don't know why you care so much."

"Because the goings on upset you, and I don't like it when you get upset," Ventus said. "So, I'm trying to get a handle on how they go, so I can suggest a solution."

Vanitas kissed Ventus' forehead. "Don't worry about it. It's been a problem for years. It's sweet of you to care, but it's a waste of your time and energy."

"I guess..." Ven still looked sad.

Although he wanted to be annoyed with Ventus, Vanitas couldn't help but feel guilty. Vanitas knew a bit of basic communication could probably fix things between Sora and his mother. Vanitas was really the only person who was in a position to argue his mother's perspective clearly, since his mother often got overly emotionally charged when she was upset, and her meaning got warped.

Vanitas could work to make things better. He could help bridge the gap, even if just a little. It would take so much energy, though, and although he did not like his mother being upset, he did not know that he was willing to put so much effort into making this work.

Ventus was not even directly involved, but he was willing to meddle in stuff he did not understand and try to sort out a mess of a family just so that Vanitas was happier. Vanitas wanted to be annoyed by his genuine concern, but the only emotion that was showing up was a fond feeling in the pit of his gut.

"You're a good person," Vanitas told him, brushing Ventus' cheek with his hand.

"I just want you to be happy and have a good family life."

Vanitas smiled. "When you're around, there's no way I can't be happy."

"You are so cheesy sometimes."

"Shh," Vanitas said, poking Ventus. "No one else is supposed to know that."

Ven smiled. "It'll be our secret. They should get to see your sweet side, though."

Vanitas shrugged. "Xion does."

"Good. She's sweet."

"She's a good kid," Vanitas agreed.

"Yeah."

Vanitas leaned his head on Ventus' shoulder, and Ventus looked a little bit surprised. "You're extra cuddly today."

"So?" Vanitas asked, his words defensive, but his tone almost teasing.

"I like it," Ventus said earnestly.

Vanitas smiled. "I'm glad."

Ven kissed Van's forehead. Van's smile only grew wider.

"And you're smiley."

"Mmhm."

"Is there a reason for that?" Ventus asked. Vanitas' mood whiplash was a bit baffling to him.

"You," Vanitas said, being typically straight-forward. "I love you."

* * *

Ven leaned his head on Van's. Hearing those words from Vanitas always made him happy, because he never saw them coming. "Love you too."

Vanitas kissed Ventus.

Ventus kissed back.

The door opened.

"Oh," came a small sound from the doorway.

Vanitas looked up, and his eyes narrowed when he saw a small brunette standing at the entrance to his room. His good mood started to plummet. "Get the fuck out of my room."

"S-sorry... Mom wanted me to tell you two that dinner was ready..." Sora looked at the floor.

Vanitas completely ignored Sora's apology. "I repeat, get the FUCK out of my room. The door was closed for a fucking reason."

"R-right. Sorry." Sora left quickly, closing the door behind him.

Vanitas looked at the door, feeling his control of the situation quickly slipping away. "Fuck."

"Van..." Ventus said worriedly.

Vanitas didn't say anything. He only stared at the door, a look of controlled anger on his face.

"Van," Ventus repeated.

Standing up abruptly, Vanitas said, "Let's go eat."

"No, we're going to talk first," Ventus said calmly.

"We're not keeping Mom waiting."

Ventus sighed. "Fine, but we're talking after."

"Fine," Vanitas said, only agreeing because he knew Ventus would bring it up whether he liked it or not.

Vanitas knew that when Ventus got an idea in his head, he could be frustratingly persistent.

* * *

Dinner was awkward. Vanitas refused to meet Sora's eyes, and everyone at the table was confused about what was going on between the two. No one said anything. Their father figured that it was not his affair to be messing in, and Xion, who was sending Sora questioning looks the entire meal, was ignored. Their mom seemed almost oblivious, seeming to think that the animosity was normal.

Everyone was glad when dinner was over and Vanitas went back to his room. Ventus, of course, went with him. Vanitas walked to his bed and fell forward, landing face down on his pillow.

Ven sat next to him. "Van..."

"Mmf?"

"Why did you react like that?" Ven asked carefully.

Refusing to remove his head from where it was buried in the pillow, Vanitas merely said, "Mf mmf mmmmf."

"I don't understand pillow talk."

Vanitas shifted his head slightly so that Ventus could see one of his eyes.

"Move more so I can see your mouth and then answer."

Vanitas shifted slightly more. "I was surprised."

"I think you scared Sora," Ventus said.

"He wasn't supposed to be there," Vanitas said, anger starting to seep into his tone. "He knows better than to go in my room when the door is closed."

Ventus diplomatically said, "People forget sometimes."

Vanitas shrugged. "I panicked."

"It's not like he'd tell anyone."

Vanitas shrugged again. Ventus had just accidentally hit on his greatest concern, and he probably did not even realize it.

"You should apologize," Ventus said.

"I was planning on talking to him later, anyway," Vanitas said, although he was nearly certain that his version of talking was different from Ventus'.

"Okay, good."

Vanitas hid his face again. Ven poked him. "Go now or I'm leaving.'

"Do I have to?" Vanitas asked in a tone that was definitely not whining.

Not at all.

"Yes," Ventus responded firmly.

Vanitas sighed. "Evil," he muttered. He knew he should have put up more of a fight, but Ventus was wearing his determined face. When Ventus was wearing his determined face, Vanitas disagreeing too much only led to Ventus giving ultimatums that never ended well for Vanitas. So, he got up and walked to Sora's room. He knocked on the door.

"Come in!" Sora called from inside.

Vanitas opened the door and poked his head in. "Hi."

"Hi..." Sora seemed confused. Vanitas almost never came to his room. The two typically ignored each other.

"Ven said I had to apologize," Vanitas intoned, his voice flat.

"Oh," Sora said. "Well, there's no point if you're not going to mean it. I can tell him you did anyway, though."

Vanitas looked down. "Didn't say I didn't mean it."

Sora looked at him skeptically. "You never mean it. Why start now?"

"You screwed up, but I could've yelled at you slightly less," Vanitas said.

Sora shrugged. "You've done worse. I'm used to it. It doesn't matter."

"I'm still sorry."

"It's fine," Sora said.

"Okay," Vanitas said, figuring that was good enough for Ventus. "I'm going back to my room now. You won't tell?"

"I have a sense of self-preservation," Sora said. "I'm not telling a soul."

That was the biggest relief to Vanitas. Although he did not agree with Sora about a lot, he knew htat Sora was generally good on his word. If he said he wasn't going to tell, he wouldn't. "Good."

"Yeah." Sora looked uncomfortable with Van in his room. Vanitas was only usually in his room if bad things were happening. Vanitas being there was making him instinctively worried.

Not wanting to drag things out any longer than he had to, Vanitas said, "Bye," and walked back to his room.

"I talked to him," he said, sitting back down next to Ventus.

"And?" Ventus prompted.

"And he won't tell," Vanitas said, settling back in on his bed next to Ventus.

"Didn't I tell you that much?"

"Yeah," Vanitas agreed. "I had to be sure, though." If Vanitas were Sora, he'd be looking to see how he could use his new knowledge to his advantage.

"So, everything is good now?" Ventus asked.

"Yeah."

"Good."

"Mmhm." Vanitas sighed.

The two of them spent the rest of the evening together. When it finally started getting late, Ventus left for the night.

That left Vanitas alone in his room, vaguely unsettled and planning back-up measures, just in case everything blew up in his face.

**[TBC]**


End file.
